Industry News

Social care law change in prospect

The Law Commission is holding out the prospect of the first comprehensive reform of social care law for more than half a century. Announcing a formal review of what it calls "a confusing patchwork of conflicting statutes", the commission said it aimed to recommend a more coherent structure - preferably in the form of a single act of parliament. The review will cover adult residential care, community care, and support for carers. The commission argues that, because the legislative frameworks for these aspects have been assembled in piecemeal fashion, the law is fragmented and difficult to understand and apply. The review is likely to take up to three years. Its outcome could dovetail with any reform of the care and support system arising from the green paper expected next year, following the consultation opened by the government last month. The commission points out that one strong reason for modernising social care law is the outdated language and terminology used in some statutes. The National Assistance Act 1948, which can still determine eligibility for community care for disabled people, employs terms such as "mentally disordered", "handicapped" and "suffer[ing] from congenital deformity" that were superseded by definitions in the Disability Discrimination Act 1995.

www.guardian.co.uk - 11/06/08

 

Councils cut back on social care

Elderly people in England are facing further cutbacks to social services, according to a new report. The LGA surveyed the eligibility criteria which each council in England will use in the new financial year. Nine councils have tightened their eligibility criteria, while just two have widened their criteria. Help with basic daily tasks, such as washing and eating, is increasingly available only to those with the greatest need. Three quarters of councils now only provide personal care to elderly and disabled people who have greater than 'substantial' needs. The LGA says the ageing population is forcing local authorities to ration lower-level social care for the elderly and disabled slightly further than in previous years. "The new figures for eligibility criteria paint a stark picture of an under-funded and inflexible system that is beginning to creak at the seams," says Cllr David Rogers, LGA spokesperson on social care. Town halls have found their hands tied because increased demand has placed a huge strain on council budgets. The LGA is calling for the government to further simplify the social care system, with hospitals and break down barriers between the health and social care systems. They also urged the government not to lose sight of immediate pressures on the current system as it sought to provide longer-term answers. The councils which have narrowed their criteria are Bromley, City of London, East Riding of Yorkshire, Hammersmith and Fulham, Hartlepool, Kingston upon Thames, Medway, Trafford and Wandsworth. The two which have widened their criteria are Nottinghamshire and North Yorkshire. Just four councils - Calderdale, Darlington, Isles of Scilly and Sunderland - provide care for people with the lowest level of need. Read the report here.

www.bbc.co.uk - 08/06/08

 

Thousands 'are forced to choose between food and home care'

Thousands of vulnerable people are going without food and heating to pay the soaring costs of homecare services provided by LAs, a coalition of 18 charities claims in a new report. They found that charges for assistance with dressing, washing and eating have more than trebled since 1997 as cash-strapped councils try to limit growth in the social services budget. Many disabled people and fragile pensioners had cancelled help because they could no longer afford to pay. Others were going short of food or fuel to pay for home care or transport to a day centre. The charities – representing disabled people, older people, people with long-term medical conditions and carers – said councils had wide discretion about how much to charge. In some areas services were free, but in others the cost could be up to £17.30 an hour. Only the poorest households were exempt. After investigating the burden on service users, the charities said: "In 1997, LAs raised £102m in fees and charges for homecare services, the majority of which was from older people. By 2004 this figure had more than doubled to £205m. By 2006, people over 65 were contributing £380m to the support they receive to remain living in their own homes."  This was equivalent to a 273% average price increase over nine years for about 200,000 people who are charged for care services at home, a spokesman for the coalition said. The DH said it had recently increased the social care budget by £500m to improve council services.

www.guardian.co.uk - 04/06/08

 

 

ECCA says care provider fee increases fail to match rising costs

The ECCA has warned that increasing numbers of English councils are failing to increase fees to independent care providers in line with inflation. Over 2008-9, hundreds of providers will struggle to meet additional costs due to a 25p hourly rise in the minimum wage this October and the impact or a four-day increase in statutory holiday entitlements for staff last October, the ECCA said. Some LAs and PCTs have also "ignored" clauses in contracts which would guarantee annual inflationary uplifts to fees, the report, Nothing for Services, Nothing for Quality, claimed. The ECCA acknowledged that LA funding had not increased sufficiently but argued that this was "no justification" for failing to increase fees, despite LA efficiency savings targets. The Association called on the government to revise fee offers to a minimum meeting the current retail price index measure of inflation, which was 4.2% in April, and to ensure LAs "did not behave in a similar fashion" next year. The UKHCA backed the ECCA's call. However, the ADASS said that while some LAs may be paying low or nil increases for 2008/9, this was "by no means the general position". Sarah Pickup, co-chair of the ADASS resources committee, said low increase in some cases "may be entirely justifiable" given "challenging" efficiency targets. She also pointed out that the inflation rate used by government in funding authorities was the consumer price index, which was at 2.75% when councils' grant settlement was finalised: “Given the wide range of local circumstances it would be difficult for the government to give any commitment that authorities cannot 'behave in a similar fashion' next year."

www.communitycare.co.uk - 02/06/08

 

£255m boost for Carers

The government has launched a new multi-million pound cross-cutting strategy to improve the lives of Britain's army of carers. The Carers Strategy is supported by £255m of new investment to implement some immediate steps. This is in addition to the £224m per annum given to LAs through the Carers Grant, the extra £340m to be spent by the government supporting the families of disabled children over the next three years, and £2.7m a year to fund a new information helpline and website for carers. The announcement means: £150m extra investment to expand short breaks for carers over two years; £38m towards supporting carers to enter or re-enter the job market with more guidance for employers, and more flexible and accessible skills training for carers; piloting annual health checks for carers to help them stay mentally and physically well; training for GPs to recognise the role that carers play and pressures on the carers' own health; £6m towards improving the support for young carers and more protection from inappropriate caring for young people; and giving carers greater choice and control over their lives by encouraging increased use of DPs. The strategy was drawn up with a wide range of key stakeholders. More than 33,000 people's views were fed into the consultation.

www.gnn.gov.uk - 10/06/08

 

Skills for Care issues staff training guide for personal budget users

Skills for Care has launched a guide to help people receiving direct payments or personal budgets train their personal care staff. The move follows concerns from the National Centre for Independent Living that personal assistants, who support direct payment users, were currently poorly paid and had little access to training. Skills for Care predicts the number of personal assistants could increase ninefold over the next two decades due to the rollout of personal budgets. The training code advises people employing their own personal assistant on drawing up training plans, helping them gain relevant qualifications and ensuring they have the relevant skills for the job. These may include moving and handling, disability awareness, personal care, health and safety, infection control and administering medicines. Many personal assistants do not have a recognised qualification, such as the Health and Social Care NVQ. Three further training codes have also been published to advise care workers themselves, and purchasers and providers of training.

www.communitycare.co.uk - 13/06/08

 

Government pledges £900,000 towards independent living

Ivan Lewis has announced an extra £900,000 to help disabled people work towards having more independent lives. Speaking at an Office for Disability Issues consultation event on delivery of the Independent Living Strategy the Minister pledged new funding to help create up to 14 user-led organisations become new Action and Learning Sites. These organisations are led and controlled by disabled people and aim to help disabled people lead more independent lives. Also being launched is the Personalisation Resource Toolkit, part of the early work on the Personalisation Programme. This will work with leaders in the adult social care field to help councils transform systems so that clients have more control over the care they receive. The toolkit is the first product of the programme and will provide advice and examples of good practice to local authorities as they move to implementing a personalised system. The extra funding will assist User-Led Organisations to develop and improve their capacity and long term sustainability. The best practice resulting from the Action and Learning Sites will be shared to ensure that every locality has the chance to develop and have access to a user-led organisation. The Personalisation Toolkit is an on-line resource to help councils and their partners set up a change programme and will provide helpful tools, templates and examples based on early learning from the individual budget pilot and the work of in Control.

www.gnn.gov.uk - 04/06/08

 

Social Care workers go unchecked, police warn

Tens of thousands of migrants are working with vulnerable elderly people without undergoing full CRB checks, according to a report by senior police officers. Home Secretary Jacqui Smith has been alerted to the scale of the problem in a report detailing the impact on the UK of migration from Eastern Europe. The introduction of a watchdog next year to vet care workers will not address the problem, senior officers add. Many homes and agencies would be unable to operate without employing foreign workers, as British workers are unwilling to take the jobs. Smith has been told that migrants are being employed in the care sector without being fully checked because authorities cannot access foreign criminal records. An estimated 240,000 foreign-born people were employed in the sector in 2006, including more than 105,000 care assistants and home carers. More than 20,000 workers from Poland, Czech Republic, Slovenia, Slovakia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia have registered as care workers since their countries joined the EU in May 2004. Since 2005 the EU has been trying to set up a system for the exchange of criminal records, but progress has been slow. The ISA, which will begin operating next year, will decide who should be barred from working with the vulnerable by using existing government-run barring lists and a CRB check which shows whether a person has offended in the UK. An estimated 11m individuals will have to pass through the authority’s checking procedures in the first five years of operations, but police are saying that the system is not foolproof. A report by two senior officers highlights a loophole in both the existing checking system and the one that will begin operating next year. Care homes and agencies supplying foreigners to work with the vulnerable can get a check from the CRB, but this only indicates whether the authorities have intelligence suggesting unsuitability to work with vulnerable people.

www.timesonline.co.uk - 02/06/08

 

Government “committed to family doctor services”

Health Minister Ben Bradshaw has underlined the Government's investment in family doctor services on a visit to a newly opened GP health centre in Kirkby-in-Ashfield nr Nottingham. The centre offers a range of services: GP services with extended opening hours from 8am-8pm Monday to Friday and Saturday mornings; enhanced services for patients including those with learning disabilities and heart disease; and additional medical support to the new inpatient intermediate care services at Ashfield Health Village. Six GP surgeries and 15 GP-led health centres are being procured across the East Midlands as part of the work underway to improve access to and choice of GP services, using their share of £250m additional funding. The first of these will be open and seeing patients before the end of the year, offering extended opening hours and a broader range of services, with local GPs showing strong interest in being potential providers, bidding in their existing business model or in collaboration with other providers. In addition, Bradshaw also announced three more community hospitals to be situated in the South East. Each hospital will offer a range of services tailored to the needs of the communities they serve, including GPs and other primary care practitioners providing extended hours opening and a range of outpatients and diagnostics closer to people's homes. Plans also include minor injuries units, and integrated health and social care facilities.

www.gnn.gov.uk - 10/06/08

 

Firms 'to run failing NHS trusts'

Ministers are set to announce that private firms could be drafted in to run struggling NHS hospitals and PCTs in England. Executives from companies like Bupa or from better-performing NHS trusts could be used to replace existing bosses. Ministers say it is one of a range of options aimed at improving performance. In October the government will publish new criteria for quality, safety and financial performance, which all NHS trusts in England will be expected to meet. Some trusts are likely to be identified as falling short and to be given a deadline to turn things around. The DH said that although private firms would provide management services at NHS trusts, front-line staff would remain NHS employees. Officials said it was not expected that "huge numbers" of NHS trusts would be affected. It is thought about 20 trusts labelled weak by a Healthcare Commission report last autumn could be identified as candidates. Health Minister Ben Bradshaw said the likelihood was that in the majority of cases management would be taken over by other NHS units. "But there may be examples where no NHS hospital is interested in taking over a failing hospital, or where local NHS managers think that in order to have more competition and choice for people locally that bringing in a private manager on a franchise arrangement will be the most sensible idea. Our experience is that you can when you bring in, not just the private sector, but the voluntary sector, help drive up standards in local health areas." The BMA warned that the scheme could lead to "fragmentation" within the health service.

www.bbc.co.uk - 04/06/08

 

32 PCTs to spearhead surge in talking therapies

Ivan Lewis has announced the sites who will begin to roll out talking therapies around the country. Each of the 32 PCTs will receive a share of the £33m first instalment of new money announced for the purpose by Alan Johnson on World Mental Health Day last year (10 October). The funds will help the NHS create a new workforce that can offer properly supervised low intensity and high intensity therapy, slashing waiting times for this kind of treatment and helping patients achieve a level of recovery that they can clearly see and which is in line with the evidence from clinical trials that has been independently reviewed by the NIHCE. Over the next three years, 3,600 extra therapists will be trained and offer treatment to 900,000 people. In the first year, at least 700 therapists will be trained and see around 100,000 people.

www.gnn.gov.uk - 13/06/08

 

And finally… Brown announces free swimming for over-60s

Gordon Brown has announced plans for free admission to public swimming pools in England for over-60s to promote sport ahead of the London Olympics. Ministers have indicated it is the first step towards the scrapping of all pool entry charges by the time the games open in 2012. Culture, media and sport minister Andy Burnham likened the plan to Labour's decision to introduce free admission to museums and galleries in 1997. His department initially said the government would allocate £80m to LAs in 2009 to waive charges for over-60s, with a further £50m for the upkeep of pools. However, Burnham signalled future spending rounds would include further funding to cover free entry for under-16s, with universal free admission by 2012. Pamela Holmes, head of healthy ageing at Help the Aged, said: "The importance of staying active in later life cannot be over-estimated, but for many older people on tight budgets, activities such as swimming are a luxury. This is a step in the right direction, but we need to stride towards providing a range of options for activity. The government must ensure that the necessary staples of life are equally affordable."

www.guardian.co.uk - 06/06/08

 

Articles of Interest

1. Diary of a social worker. The Today programme is broadcasting a major series examining care of the elderly in the UK. One of the listeners who contacted the programme is a social worker in a hospital. The social worker's identity is secret, but the diary reveals the work that goes on as elderly patients are moved from hospital to home. www.bbc.co.uk - 03/06/08
   
   
2. Q&A: carers. The government has promised a better deal for the millions of people who provide unpaid care for their sick or disabled partners, friends and relatives. Sara Gaines explains who this 'hidden army' are, the toll their caring extracts, and what support they receive. www.guardian.co.uk - 09/06/08
   
   
3. Breaking the mould. The government has unveiled its eagerly awaited strategy for carers. But does it live up to expectations? Alison Benjamin gets experts' reactions. www.guardian.co.uk - 10/06/08
   
   
4. Hidden heroes in our homes. We should care more about carers, even pay them to care, as they save the NHS millions, says Sophie Moullin. www.guardian.co.uk - 11/06/08
   
   
5. The disability knowledge gap. We have put man on the moon, but don't know how many of people are learning disabled, writes David Brindle. www.guardian.co.uk - 11/06/08
   
   
6. Saving the day centre. Day Centres have long been viewed as fostering segregation, yet they remain popular with the people who use them. Peter Beresford and WendyBryant report. www.guardian.co.uk - 11/06/08
   
   
7. No country for old men. Stuart Jeffriesinvestigates why women enjoy old age more than men. www.guardian.co.uk - 11/06/08

 

Key Conferences and events

Conference	Date	Location	Organiser
Tackling the Social Exclusion of Older People	17/06/08	Central London [TBC]	Capita Conferences
Kent Messenger Social Care Expo	18/06/08	Kent Showground, Detling, Maidstone	The KM Group
No Secrets: Update and Review	23/06/08	ORT House Conference Centre, London	Pavilion Publishing
Tackling the Eligibility Crisis in Adult Services - Working towards the transformation of social care	24/06/08	Central London [TBC]	Community Care
The Role of Activity Based Costing in PbR: Strategic and Practical Issues	24/06/08	Central London [TBC]	CareandHealth
Integrated Care Pathways 2008	25/06/08 – 26/06/08	76 Portland Place, London	Healthcare Events
The Green Paper on Adult Social Care Seminar 2 - Service Users‘ expectations	26/06/08	Central London [TBC]	CareandHealth
National Commissioning and Contracting Training Conference	26/06/08 – 27/06/08	The Hayes Conf. Centre, Swanwick, Derbyshire	P.S. Conferences
Better Lives, Better Futures: Making Progress in Modernising Mental Health Day Services	27/06/08	ORT House Conference Centre, London	Pavilion Publishing
LGA annual conference and exhibition 2008: putting people first	01/07/08 – 03/07/08	Bournemouth International Centre	LGA
Achieving Positive Outcomes for Children and Young People through Emotional Well-being	03/07/08	Central London [TBC]	Pavilion Publishing
Preparing for the Green Paper Overhaul in Adult Social Care: Using New Solutions to Overcome Challenges and Improve Care	08/07/08	Central London [TBC]	Community Care
Learning Disability Today: Manchester	08/07/08	Central Manchester [TBC]	Pavilion Publishing
National Health and Social Care Commissioning Conference & Exhibition	14/07/08 – 15/07/08	Hilton Metropole, London	CareandHealth
Transforming Social Care: Putting People First	15/07/08	Jurys Hotel (Great Russell St), London	Counsel + Care
Managing the Commissioning Process: Analysing the Key Cost Drivers	17/07/08	Central London [TBC]	CareandHealth
8th Annual Mental Health Education & Training Conference: Future Challenges	10/09/08 – 11/09/08	Jubilee Campus, University of Nottingham	Pavilion Publishing
Seventh National Palliative Care Conference: Delivering the End of Life Care Strategy	11/09/08	76 Portland Place, London	Healthcare Events
Independent Health and Care Convention	16/09/08 – 17/09/08	The Brewery, London EC1	Laing & Buisson
Implementing the mental capacity act in health and social care	23/09/08	4 Hamilton Place, London	Healthcare Events
Strategy Mapping and Balanced Scorecards	28/09/08	Central London [TBC]	CareandHealth
The Evolving Role of the Finance Director in Healthcare	30/10/08	Central London [TBC]	CareandHealth
Mental Health Today: Manchester	08/07/08	Central Manchester [TBC]	Pavilion Publishing
Managing PCT Resources: A Financial Perspective	26/11/08	Central London [TBC]	CareandHealth
Learning Disability Today: London	27/11/08	Business Design Centre, Islington, London	Pavilion Publishing

 

Publications

• Domiciliary Care Markets 2006. Laing and Buisson
• The Nuts and Bolts of Primary Care Provision – NHS Alliance, January 2006
• The State of Social Care in England 2005-06 – CSCI, December 2006
• Building on the Best: Choice, Responsiveness and Equity in the NHS, DH, December 2003
• The Draft Mental Health Bill - An assessment of the implications for mental health service organisations - NHS Confederation, November 2003
• Better Care Higher Standards - Wandsworth charter for adult with long term care needs - Wandsworth PCT, September 2003
• London Mental Health Workforce, A Review of Recent Developments - King's Fund, April 2003
• Community Care Statistics 2005: Home help/care services for adults – DH, March 2006
• Personal Social Services Expenditure and Unit Costs: England 2001-2002 - DH, February 2003
• Personal Social Services Elderly Homecare User Experience Survey: What Needs Doing for 2002-2003 - DH, February 2003
• Community Care Statistics 2001/2002 - Referrals, Assessments and Packages of Care Project (RAP) - DH, January 2003
• Care of Elderly People, Market Survey 2005.  Laing and Buisson
• Joint inspection of older people’s services in Brent, June 2005
• Flexible Staffing in the UK Healthcare Market, 2004. Laing and Buisson
• Improving Services for Older People. King’s Fund, 2006
• Guidance Notes on Fair Access to Care Services. DH, 2005
• The Business of Caring: Inquiry into care services for older people in London. King’s Fund, 2005
• Social Care needs and Outcomes: A Background Paper for the Wanless Social Care Review. Wanless Review Team, 2005
• No Excuse – Embrace Partnership, now step forward, change. A Report from the Third Sector Commissioning Taskforce, 2006
• A Social Care Finance Survey. LGA, 2006.
• Community Care Statistics 2006. DH HSIC, May 2007