A report by the Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) has recommended a three-point plan for the reform of post-pandemic adult social care.
The ‘Beyond Covid: new thinking on the future of adult social care’ report sets out three so-called shifts, or priorities for reform.
The first shift is to move away from a “hand-to-mouth” existence to “long-term and sustainable funding”.
“We simply can’t go on like this, and call on the government to for a fair and long-term funding settlement for social care,” said SCIE.
The second shift is to move focus away from remedial and acute services towards prevention.
“To assist with this shift, introduce innovation funds which for the sector to scale up the most effective preventative models of care, housing and technology.”
The third shift is to move from workforce “low pay, low recognition and poor conditions, towards higher pay, better conditions, progression and development - and parity of esteem with the NHS”.
In addition, SCIE called for a long-term plan for social care mirroring the publication of the NHS Long Term Plan.
“Since I became a care worker at 16, I have never known a worse period for social care. Every day, as more reports came in about deaths that could have been prevented, lack of testing kit and personal protective equipment, or local authorities and providers facing financial ruin, I’ve felt a sense of despair,” said SCIE chief executive Kathryn Smith (pictured).
“However, I am also reminded every day of the enormous resilience, versatility, passion and empathy of the care workforce, and within wider communities. And I ask myself, can we come out of this undoubted crisis stronger? I think we can,” she added.
