|
Dear colleagues
A decade on since the Care Act received Royal Assent, the LGA’s new publication - Care Act: 10 years on from Royal Assent - reflects on what has been achieved and the challenges facing the sector. We hear from a range of senior and expert colleagues including the four Ministers from the time, Chief Executive of the NHS Confederation, Matthew Taylor, Research Director at IPSOS Mori, Dr Margaret Blake and Chief Executive of Barnsley Council, Sarah Norman.
We also hear from people who draw on social care as well as the care workforce, drawing on their views, the report sets out recommendations for change. With the General Election on the horizon, we believe now is a good time for the LGA, councils and the wider sector to reflect on the serious challenges facing adult social care and how – collectively – we can tackle them, so that everyone who draws on care and support is able to live the life they want to lead.
This report summarises the response to an online survey completed by 49 lead members (response rate of 32 per cent) for adult social care at English single-tier and county councils in March 2024. The survey captured their insights on the impact of the 2014 Care Act a decade after receiving royal assent, their assessment of the current state of the adult social care sector, and their thoughts on what the sector’s priorities for the future should be.
I would like to ask colleagues to share the report, which launched last week, with their relevant stakeholders and support the report on social media.
Following the recent local elections, you may be taking up new or different roles in health and care and do look at our offer for new lead members, including a free online induction event in June, with best wishes for your challenging and exciting new leadership roles.
Yours sincerely,
Cllr David Fothergill
Chairman, LGA Community Wellbeing Board
Stories
Consultation on NHS Constitution 10 year review
DHSC has launched a consultation on the NHS Constitution.
The NHS Constitution empowers patients, staff and the public to know and exercise their rights to help drive improvements in quality, efficiency and responsiveness throughout the NHS. Every 10 years the Secretary of State is required to review the NHS Constitution. This consultation covers a limited set of specific changes to improve the current content, reflect important changes to government policy and to keep both the NHS Constitution and the handbook legally up to date.
DHSC is seeking views on these proposed changes and on any further views on the NHS Constitution itself.
The consultation will be open for eight weeks, closing on 25 June 2024 at 11:59pm.
Share for Better Care campaign
Share for Better Care is a campaign to help improve care services for all by encouraging everyone to give feedback on their experiences; in particular minority ethnic communities, people with a learning disability or autism, disabled people and lower income groups. It also aims to raise awareness of the work the CQC does and build trust and confidence in its role as a regulator; to continue to build on a culture that welcomes, values, and acts on feedback; to tackle inequalities by amplifying the voices of people most likely to have a poorer experience of care and difficult accessing care; and to deliver regulation driven by people’s needs and experiences of care.
Share for Better Care will run until March 2025 and will have phases of activity over the next 12 months focusing on different audiences to increase awareness of the importance of feeding back about care experiences.
Give feedback on care
Resources include a stakeholder toolkit – assets and messaging for you to use and cascade throughout your networks; Deaf or Hard of Hearing and Text Relay. Interpreter services are available, email enquiries@cqc.org.uk.
Giving children the best start in life: Shining a spotlight on health visiting
These health visiting case studies illustrate the pivotal role health visitors play in ensuring children and families get the support they need in challenging times.
Giving children the best start in life: Shining a spotlight on health visiting
Towards a healthy weight: Local government action to improve children’s health
Local councils across the country are embracing a variety of innovative strategies to promote children's healthy weight. These case studies offer valuable insights into the challenges and opportunities associated with promoting children’s healthy weight at the local level.
Towards a healthy weight: Local government action to improve children’s health
Start for Life offer volunteers
The Support for Infants and Parents Private Members’ Bill is looking to explore further the roll out of the Start for Life (SfL) offers. As part of this, the SfL team are looking for volunteers to support with completing a new burdens assessment for the duty on councils to publish a SfL offer and developing statutory guidance on SfL offers. For more details on this contact charlotte.dring@dhsc.gov.uk
Proposed amendments to PACE Codes of Practice A and C: strip searches
The Home Office is consulting on ways to strengthen the safeguards for children and vulnerable persons who are subject to searches involving the exposure of intimate parts without hindering the police’s ability to keep the public safe.
Proposed amendments to PACE Codes of Practice A and C: strip searches
Social work employer standards health check
Every year, we conduct a health check of the Employer Standards for social work. The survey is designed to better understand the social care workforce. This year, we received over 15,321 responses from over 160 organisations. The national summary of the survey results is now available to read and participating councils are currently in the process of receiving their individual results.
Modernising support for independent living consultation
The Government consultation on Modernising Support for Independent Living: The Health and Disability Green Paper seeks views on options to change Personal Independence Payment (PIP). The views shared during this consultation period will be used to help shape the future of the health and disability benefits system.
Care quality Commission (CQC) developing dementia strategy
CQC has started to develop a Dementia Strategy. The strategy will be shaped by this central question: How can CQC use its role to improve the experience of using health and social care services for people living with dementia and their carers? CQC would like to hear views on the following questions:
- What does good dementia care look like and what part do local councils play in that?
- What are the enablers and barriers to providing good quality dementia care to people and supporting carers?
- What are the system challenges and opportunities for people living with dementia and their carers?
- What can CQC do to better recognise good practice in care for people living with dementia and their carers?
If you would like to share your reflections or share good practice examples, please send to: dementiastrategy@cqc.org.uk
Buckland Review of Autism Employment
The Buckland Review of Autism Employment has now been published. Led by Sir Robert Buckland KC and supported by the charity Autistica, the review's 19 recommendations for businesses and government include encouraging career progression by developing packages of training focused on autistic staff and improving recruitment by ensuring career advisers can provide appropriate advice to autistic job seekers.
Good Lives Manifesto 2024: Disability England
Learning Disability England has published the ‘Good Lives Manifesto 2024 which lays out changes that people with learning disabilities, family members, and the people who work with them would like to see in the next Government.
Rise in whooping cough cases
New UKHSA data shows whooping cough cases continue to increase with 1,319 cases confirmed in March. This follows 556 in January and 918 in February, bringing the total number of cases in 2024 to 2,793. Vaccination remains the best defence and it is vital that pregnant women and infants receive their vaccines at the right time.
Personalised care and support planning for people experiencing mental health challenges
Thursday 30 May 12.00pm-5.00pm
Friday 31 May, 9.30am-2.30pm
This interactive training has been co-designed to develop the confidence,
knowledge and skills of frontline staff to take a holistic and biopsychosocial
focused approach to assessment and care planning. It is aimed at anyone who works with people with mental health challenges, including those working in social care, health or the voluntary and community enterprise sector.
Book your place on care and support planning training
Issues that impact on autistic women for council and NHS staff supporting them in the community
18 June 2.00pm - 4.00pm
Partners in Care in Health is delivering an on-line event to help council and NHS staff understand issues that impact on autistic women with speakers from Neurodiverse Connection.
Book your place on issues that impact on autistic women
Online induction event for new lead members for adult social care
25 June 2024
This free all day induction session is aimed at new portfolio holders with responsibility for Adult Social Care. Held via Teams, it will offer an introduction to current policy issues in care and health, including assurance, personalisation and integration. To make a booking or for more information, please contact katerina.charalambous@local.gov.uk
Leadership Essentials: Adult Social Care
Thursday, 24 October – Friday, 25 October 2024, Warwick
Part of the wider offer on political leadership from the LGA, this free residential event aims to support new Adult Social Care Lead Members with key challenges in a rapidly changing and high profile policy care and health landscape. The two days are delivered by LGA staff supported by high profile speakers and provide lots of opportunities sharing practice and networking. The cost of attending this programme is fully subsidised and includes accommodation and meals. For more information and to make a booking, please contact grace.collins@local.gov.uk
Calendar of events
The role of social workers in Care (Education) and Treatment Reviews
10 June 2024, 10.00am - 11.30am | Virtual
High-Cost Placement Negotiations: follow-on workshop
12 June 2.00pm - 4.00pm | Virtual
High-Cost Placement Negotiations: follow-on workshop
13 June 2.00pm - 4.00pm | Virtual
Issues that impact on autistic women for council and NHS staff supporting them in the community
18 June 2024, 2.00pm - 4.00pm | Virtual
Induction event for new lead members for adult social care
25 June 2024 | Virtual
LGA Annual Conference and Exhibition
2 - 4 July 2024 | Harrogate Convention Centre
‘Right care, right person’ in practice: one year on
11 July 2024, 10.30am - 12.00pm | Virtual
Leadership Essentials: Adult Social Care
24 - 25 October 2024 | Warwick
National Children and Adult Services Conference
27 - 29 November 2024 | Liverpool ACC
Sector support offer for local authorities 2024/25
LGA
National summary report of the employer standards survey for registered social workers 2024
LGA
Getting under the bonnet: Implementing the NHS Health Check
LGA
Reducing the harm of shisha and the need for better regulation
LGA
Learning from the Care Quality Commission pilots for principal social workers
LGA
Ordinary residence guide: Determining local authority responsibilities under the Care Act and the Mental Health Act
LGA
Councils taking charge: A comprehensive approach to supporting a smokefree generation
LGA
Top tips and key actions for successful collaborative partnership working across mental health services
Partners in Care and Health
Reducing restrictive practice
Partners in Care and Health
Closed cultures in social care: guidance and questions to ask
Partners in Care and Health
What good looks like: Values-based recruitment in adult social care
Partners in Care and Health
Buckland Review of Autism Employment
Department for Work & Pensions
No wrong doors for young carers
Carer's Trust
Good Lives Manifesto
Social Care England
Media
Care Act 10 years on: LGA survey lays bare urgent action needed in adult social care
14 May 2024
LGA launches Sector Support programme 2024/25
24 April 2024
LGA political proportionality confirmed
9 May 2024
Parliamentary
Integrating primary and community care
On 9 May, the House of Lords debated the Integration of Primary and Community Care Committee’s report ‘Patients at the centre’. The inquiry was launched to examine existing systems, consider the challenges facing the sector and identify barriers preventing further integration. The LGA had given evidence to the inquiry last year highlighting the willingness of councils to work with integrated care systems and emphasising how the three main factors driving variability were history, complexity and relationships. The debate also saw former LGA Chairman Lord Jamieson (Conservative) make his maiden speech in the House of Lords, where he welcomed the report’s recommendations – many of which are in line with the work of the LGA, including a focus on prevention and early intervention and the crucial roles of primary, community and social care, integration, colocation, data sharing and a genuine, joined-up approach. This will further be outlined in a major publication by the LGA next week on the Care Act, which will set out our reflections over the last decade since Royal Assent.
For more information, contact arian.nemati@local.gov.uk
Financial difficulties facing local authorities
As you may be aware, in a speech made on 19 April 2024, the Prime Minister announced that the Government is launching a Call for Evidence to hear the views and experiences of healthcare professionals, employers, patients, carers, academics, and other stakeholders to help inform an end-to-end reform of the Fit Note process. This reform will look to help people with long term health conditions get the support they need to avoid falling out of work.
The Call for Evidence will run for 10 weeks and closes on 8 July 2024.
For more information, please find the Prime Minister’s full speech and the press notice on GOV.UK. Please do share the Call for Evidence through your networks as we want to capture a wide range of views and opinions. Do get in touch if you have any questions.
first magazine
first is the LGA's membership magazine, distributed to around 18,000 councillors and local authority chief executives in England and Wales.
In this issue:
-
Guidance needed to support smoking ban
The LGA has called for sufficient lead-in time and guidance to be provided ahead of legislation on smoking and vaping coming into force, so that councils, retailers and others understand their new obligations and can prepare accordingly.
|
|
