Care Services
Minister Paul Burstow will tomorrow (14 April) send out a strong
message to councils aimed at encouraging joint working across
health and social care and making personalised care a reality.
Ahead of his speech at the Association of Directors of Adult
Social Services’ (ADASS) Spring Seminar in Newcastle, Mr Burstow
today revealed the six sites which have been selected to pilot
Social Work Practices for adult social care.
The Social Work Practice pilots will see groups of frontline
social care workers given more flexiblity to work with the people
they support and their carers to improve their outcomes.
In addition to this, the Minister has today announced plans to
strengthen the legislation on direct payments to ensure councils
make clear to every person entitled to care and support how they
can make use of a direct payment.
New Directions to councils, to be consulted on shortly, will mean
all councils must ensure there is a full and open discussion about
direct payments. This builds on best practice that is common in
some councils already.
Care Services Minister, Paul Burstow, said:
"The Coalition is determined to give people more control
over their care and support.
"Our plans will free up front line social workers to do
what they do best: help people maintain their independence. This
shift in power will give people greater control over their care
and support."
The Social Work Practice pilots are organisations that are led by
social workers but independent of local authorities. They will
provide the social work services for specific groups of adults in
their community and their carers.
The scheme, backed by more than £1 million of Department of
Health funding, will reduce bureaucracy, allowing social workers
to do their jobs effectively and freeing them to spend more time
with those in their care. It offers the potential to improve the
lives of those receiving support by offering them more stability
and continuity and will also enable social care workers to:
Take decisions closer to those in their care, leading to a more
responsive service.Feel empowered with more control over the day
to day management of the practice.Enjoy their jobs more – staff
satisfaction levels in the children’s Social Work Practice pilots
have been high as staff feel empowered and part of the
decision-making team.Build stronger links across communities and
improve integration between health and social care.
The projects are focused on different user groups including
adults with physical disabilities, older people with mental health
problems and deaf and visually impaired people.
The Social Care Institute for Excellence will oversee the project
on behalf of the Department of Health.
Stephen Goulder, the Social Care Institute for
Excellence’s Workforce Director , said:
“The Social Care Institute for Excellence encourages innovation
in social care and we are very pleased to be project managing
these pilots.
“We look forward to adding to the evidence base about the role of
social workers by sharing the findings with the sector. We are
particularly pleased that the sites cover such a diverse range of
people, services and settings.”
A successful scheme of pilots for children’s services has already
seen children in care getting better help.
Subject to Parliamentary approval of secondary legislation, the
adult pilots are expected to start in the summer and run for two
years.
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Notes to editors
1. For further information, please contact the Department of
Health press office on 020 7210 5221.
2. Applications for pilot Social Work Practices opened in
November 2010. The six successful sites and the client groups they
will work with are given below.
Birmingham City CouncilFull range of social work tasks for
people with physical disabilities and long term conditions.London
Borough of LambethAll adults: either funding their own care or
having needs below the FACS threshold.North East Lincolnshire Care
Plus TrustOlder people, including those with mental health
problems. Adults with physical, sensory or learning
disabilities.Shropshire CouncilOlder people, people with physical
disabilities and learning disabilities.Suffolk County
CouncilAdults who are deaf, visually impaired or who have dual
sensory loss.Surrey County CouncilIndividuals who are deaf or hard
of hearing
3. The Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) is an
independent charity that works across the UK to improve care
services by sharing knowledge about what works. SCIE:
captures, analyses and disseminates innovative approaches to new
challengestranslates research into practical guides and learning
materialsimproves the knowledge and skills of frontline social
care and social work staff, managers, commissioners and
trainerscovers adults', families' and
children's care services
Find out more at www.scie.org.uk
Contacts:
Department of Health
Phone: 020 7210 5221
NDS.DH@coi.gsi.gov.uk