OurDay 2018
This year’s #OurDay will take place on 20 November. Our annual “tweetathon” gives everyone who works or volunteers in local public services the chance to share their stories and demonstrate how they improve the residents’ lives. This is the seventh #OurDay and each year more people have taken part. We want councils to share the date with as many people as possible - let’s make this year’s #OurDay the biggest ever. Keep an eye on @LGAComms to see what we’ve got planned or email ourday@local.gov.uk if you have any questions.
Applications for childhood obesity funding
Applications are now open for your council to apply for funding, and be part of an LGA-run programme to tackle childhood obesity. The Childhood Obesity Trailblazer Programme forms part of the government’s childhood obesity plan, which included the aim to halve childhood obesity by 2030. Your council is invited to apply by setting out its proposals to tackle obesity locally. Up to 12 local authorities will be supported to develop practical plans, and in spring 2019, five authorities will be selected. Trailblazer councils carry out a three-year programme, receiving £100,000 worth of funding and expert support.
Health and care funding
With our campaigning for sustainable funding for adult social care and public health in mind, it is positive that this week a number of leading healthcare groups wrote to the Chancellor calling for more money to be invested in these services. They warn that, without this investment, the "consequent demand on NHS services will not be manageable". In our response, we said it is essential that adult social care is put on an equal footing with the health service.
NHS seasonal influenza vaccination for health and care social care staff
NHS England will provide free flu vaccinations for social care staff and staff in the voluntary managed hospice sector who offer direct patient care. The vaccination will be available at most community pharmacies and GP practices. Find out more about free flu vaccinations for social care and hospice staff.
Winter pressures funding
Colleagues in social care authorities will have received letters this week confirming their allocations of the £240 million fund to help local areas tackle winter pressures. This follows the announcement at the Conservative Party Conference earlier this month. The full allocations are available on the GOV.UK website. As we said in our parliamentary briefing this week, while new funding is welcome, we remain clear that pressures are year-round and short term bailouts are not the answer to finding a long-term solution for adult social care and support.
Five Year Forward View for Mental Health
The House of Commons debated the Five Year Forward View for Mental Health on 30 October. Proposing the debate, Jeff Smith, Labour MP for Manchester Whithington queried the Government’s plans to support people with severe mental illness. Mr Smith highlighted the importance of joining up mental health provision with other services, particularly social care and housing, adding that there was no consistent and coherent approach in supporting people. MPs also touched on other issues covered in our briefing, including the need for better children and adolescent mental health (CAMHS) provision and increased funding for community services.
Debate on Social Care Funding
Ahead of the Social Care Funding Opposition day debate on 17 October, we briefed MPs on our priorities for adult social care. During the debate, Andrew Gwynne MP (Labour, Denton and Reddish) cited our adult social care funding gap estimates of £3.5 billion by 2025 and said the Government should consider the responses that our adult social care green paper received. In response, Caroline Dinenage MP (Minister for Care), stated the importance of cross-party working on this issue and explained the Government had given councils up to £9.64 billion more funding for social care over the three years up to 2019-20.
Peers debate the Mental Capacity (Amendment) Bill
The House of Lords debated the Mental Capacity (Amendment) Bill on 15 October. The Bill seeks to reform the Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLs) system in adult social care and children’s services. The second day of Committee debate covered a range of issues, including the role of care home managers. The Minister, Lord O’Shaughnessy, committed to remove the responsibility for care home managers in completing pre-authorisation reviews. He also pledged to amend the Bill so that the safeguards applied to 16 and 17 year olds and acknowledged feedback about the lack of engagement with stakeholders so far on the Bill saying that the Department would “do better” to listen to stakeholders’ concerns. Our briefing to Peers includes a summary of our priorities for the Bill.
MPs debate childhood obesity
At the 16 October debate on childhood obesity, MPs stressed the need for urgent action as the UK is now the third most obese nation in the world. MPs also called on the Government to increase funding to local authority public health budgets. In response, the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Public Health and Primary Care, Steve Brine MP, referred to his announcement about a trailblazer programme which he announced at the LGA Annual Conference in July. This would involve working closely with local authorities to find solutions to barriers at local level to address childhood obesity.
Local leadership and accountability
We have published guidance for children and young people’s mental health and wellbeing services.
State of Care 2017/18
The Care Quality Commission's annual assessment of health and social care in England looks at the trends, shares examples of good and outstanding care, and highlights where care needs to improve.
Sustainability and transformation partnerships in London
The King's Fund report reviews the progress made over the past year by London's five sustainability and transformation partnerships (STPs).
Health inequalities: reducing ethnic inequalities
Public Health England has published guidance to support local and national action on ethnic inequalities in health.
'Making it Real' a framework for how to do personalised care and support
Think Local Act Personal's framework aims to support good personalised care and support for providers, commissioners and people who access services.
Progress of the Five Year Forward View for Mental Health: On the road to parity
The All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Mental Health has published a report into the delivery of the Five Year Forward View for Mental Health.
Providing a lifeline: effective scrutiny of local strategies to prevent or reduce suicide
This guide aims to help councillors and local scrutiny committees to build their knowledge and understanding about the context of suicide risk, prevalence and prevention.
National Children and Adult Services Conference 2018
14-16 November 2018 |Manchester
Sustainable Health and Care Forum conference
21 November 2018 | Birmingham
Place-based leadership for health and wellbeing in the West Midlands: accountable care learning to date 14 December 2018 | Birmingham
LGA/ADPH annual public health conference and exhibition 2019
21 March 2019 | London
LGA Annual Conference and Exhibition 2019
2-4 July 2019 | Bournemouth
Supporting digital innovation and transformation
The LGA has launched a free support offer for councils which includes bespoke support and three programmes: Social Care Digital Innovation, Design in Social Care, and Social Care Data and Cyber Discovery. Please email socialcaredigital@local.gov.uk for more information.
Children and young people's mental health focus group research
As part of the consultation, Transforming children and young people’s mental health provision: a green paper, the Department of Health and Social care has funded a series of focus groups to further understand the views of young people, parents and carers, and professionals.
NHS Digital announces digital project in social care
NHS Digital has awarded 18 councils a share of £1.4 million to develop digital projects to support social care. This funding will be used to demonstrate how predictive analytics and information sharing can support people needing social care services
Autism Self-Assessment 2018
The Association of Directors of Adult Social Services have written a joint letter with DHSC to Directors of Adult Social Services advising of the fifth autism self-assessment framework. The letter asks for continued support in undertaking the self-assessment exercise and commitment to raise the awareness and equality of autistic people. The self-assessment assists and prompts local areas in reviewing how they are doing in relation to the Autism Strategy and helps them to map out their local priorities. As in previous years the information submitted will be collated and analysed by Public Health England. Responses to the exercise are asked for by 10 December 2018.
LGA responds to Which? research on the cost of paying for a care home place
30 October 2018
Majority of people unprepared for adult social care costs
26 October 2018
LGA responds to analysis by The Health Foundation on public health services
24 October 2018
The latest issue of our members' magazine 'first' is now available online.
November 2018 highlights
Children’s mental health referrals increase
The number of children referred to mental health services in England has risen by a quarter over five years, according to a new report by the Education Policy Institute.
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