Adult social care needs a reset and must not simply revert back to the way it was prior to the pandemic, the LGA has said.
A year after the Prime Minster first pledged to set out a clear plan to “fix social care”, the LGA, with the support of dozens of health and care organisations and charities, has put forward a set of key principles which must underpin social care reform and which draw on the lessons learned from the coronavirus crisis.
The seven principles cover vital aspects of every part of social care, support and wellbeing, including putting people first, social care’s local dimension, adequate and sustainable funding, supporting the care workforce, how care is provided and commissioned, health and integration, and the scope of care and support reform.
The signatories to the principles – including the Alzheimer’s Society, NHS Confederation and the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services – insist the Government needs to publish its timetable for social care reform before Parliament returns from summer recess in September.
Cllr James Jamieson, LGA Chairman, said: “For too long, we have been promised a plan to fix the social care crisis, but people who use and work in these vital services are still waiting. The COVID-19 crisis has proved that we need a complete reset, not a restart.
“These seven principles, which have support from a number of prominent organisations across the health and care sector, need to inform and underpin the Government’s thinking on the future of adult social care in this country.
“We urge the Government and other parties to begin cross-party talks on the future of adult social care, so we can get on with the job of realising our shared ambition of supporting people to live the lives they want to lead.”