Adult social care
Improved efficiency saves hundreds of millions
London boroughs have saved almost half a billion pounds in adult social care by improving efficiency, a report has revealed.
Social care feels the squeeze on staffing
The increasing shortage of adult care staff has been highlighted in two reports last week, with the sector having the second highest vacancy rate among public services. Michael Burton reports
Directors urge action ahead of new immigration rules
The Association of Directors of Adult Social Services (ADASS) has urged action as Government considers whether to exempt the care sector from new immigration rules.
Rising care staff numbers fail to keep pace with demand
Adult social care has the second largest percentage of job vacancies across the public sector after the NHS, according to latest figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
Report: 580,000 more social workers needed by 2035
More than 500,000 social care jobs in England will need to be filled by 2035, a new report has predicted.
Children's services, adult social care top list of complaints
Most complaints about councils received by the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman (LGO) in 2018/19 concerned education, children’s services and adult social care.
Boris Johnson backs local government devolution
Council leaders will be given 'greater powers' while cities, counties and towns will become 'more self-governing,' new Prime Minister Boris Johnson has pledged.
'Significant amount of funding' for adult social care in Spending Review - minister
Adult social care will receive a ‘significant amount of funding’ in the Spending Review, a minister has pledged.
Are we shooting for the moon?
Cumbria CC’s deputy leader Cllr Peter Thornton makes the case for fair funding and fairer investment – to help unlock the inherent strength and potential of the UK’s rural areas.
How to get the most from a strengths-based approach
Clare Harding outlines the key factors that enable councils to gain the greatest impact from strengths-based approaches to adult social care and says those who do not go beyond a process or practice framework have gained less impact.
Reforming social care is a ‘whole society problem’
Dr Jonathan Carr-West asks if strengths-based approaches to caring for older people could actually obscure the sort of systemic change we need.
It’s time to get to work
Heather Jameson assesses the growing to-do list facing the sector as a new government takes shape, with Brexit still looming in the background.
Open letter to Boris Johnson
In an open letter to new Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Heather Jameson says: 'I would argue you only need to give councils one thing: respect.'
Social care director leaves Somerset
Somerset CC’s adult services director, who featured on Panorama’s investigation into the state of the social care system, is to leave the authority.
Strictly speaking
Have you ever wondered what a local government version of Strictly Come Dancing would look like?
Planning amid the certainty of uncertainty
John Hewitt says finance directors and their teams have been working ‘minor miracles’ in signing off balanced budgets for the last 10 years. He outlines a number of steps Government could take to help local authorities plan more effectively.
Spending Review needs to embody 'strategic, systematic change'
At the Local Government Association (LGA) annual conference, Claire Kober noted the biggest shift in terms of what felt different was the marked deterioration in chief executive's confidence that they can keep on weathering the funding storm.
Prospective Barchester buyer withdraws
A mooted sale of a major UK care home provider has been called off.
Why Staffordshire dares to care
Without a national solution, it’s likely councils will have to intervene even more in the care of the elderly. Dr Richard Harling explains why Staffordshire CC has chosen to launch its own nursing home venture
How London delivers safeguarding
London’s adult safeguarding partnership was set up to unite a plethora of agencies in the capital to develop a single policy and set of procedures and drive learning and improvement. Dawn Wakeling explains,