The government began consultation on a scheme designed to protect people living in care homes, and those who received personal care in their own homes, from known abusers. The 'protection of vulnerable adults' (POVA) list would, from June 2004, operate as a workforce ban on people who had harmed, or placed at risk of harm, a vulnerable adult in their care. Providers of care would be prohibited from offering employment to individuals on the POVA list; and people who knew they were confirmed on the list, but sought employment in care positions, would face criminal charges including possible imprisonment.
Source: Protection of Vulnerable Adults Scheme: England and Wales - Consultation draft, Department of Health (08701 555455)
Links: Consultation document (pdf) | DH press release | NCSC press release | Guardian report
Date: 2003-Dec
A report said that service users involved in the governing bodies of new social care regulators were positive about their experiences as board members, and believed their contributions were valued by colleagues.
Source: Frances Hasler, Users at the Heart: User participation in the governance and operations of social care regulatory bodies, Social Care Institute for Excellence/Department of Health (020 7089 6840)
Links: Report (pdf) | SCIE press release | Community Care report
Date: 2003-Nov
The government announced that a new post of 'National Director for Social Care' was being created to strengthen relationships between the Department of Health and local authority social services, and to spearhead attempts to tackle the problem of 'bed blocking' (older people being forced to stay in hospital when they were medically fit to leave).
Source: Press release 17 October 2003, Department of Health (020 7210 4850)
Links: DH press release | GSCC press release | Community Care article | Guardian article
Date: 2003-Oct
An article sought to clarify the meaning of empowerment in order to contribute to a more theoretically coherent development of policy and practice, aimed at facilitating the empowerment of health and social care service users. It concluded that professionals could work with people in empowering ways if they recognised and worked to address the structural causes of oppression.
Source: Fenella Starkey, 'The empowerment debate : consumerist, professional and liberational perspectives in health and social care', Social Policy and Society, Volume 2 Issue 4
Links: Abstract
Date: 2003-Oct
A guide examined the practical implications of achieving greater integration between health and social care services.
Source: Margaret Edwards and Clive Miller, Integrating Health and Social Care, Office of Public Management (020 7239 7800)
Links: OPM homepage
Date: 2003-Jun
A report looked at the practical application of 'user-defined outcomes' as understood by users of social care services. It was found that involvement to support user-defined outcomes took more time and resources than usually envisaged.
Source: Shaping Our Lives National User Network (et al.), Shaping our Lives From Outset to Outcome: What people think of the social care services they use, Joseph Rowntree Foundation, available from York Publishing Services Ltd (01904 431213)
Links: Report (pdf) | JRF Findings 673
Date: 2003-Jun
A new guide was published, aimed at social services departments which might be interested in starting or developing the participation of volunteers within their work. It argued that volunteers were flexible, well motivated and unpaid, and could be an effective way of adding 'best value' to service delivery.
Source: Alex Parish, Jane Heath and Meryem Hassan, Changing the Face of Social Services: Volunteers adding value in service delivery, National Centre for Volunteering (020 7520 8900)
Links: Report (pdf) | Summary
Date: 2003-Jun
The social care regulator said that changes were needed to improve the care standards system, to increase protection for individuals and reduce bureaucracy for care providers. It said national minimum standards should be amended to cut unnecessary paperwork, close loopholes which could threaten people's quality of care, provide better protection for children, and ensure that regulation was appropriate and did not restrict an individual's quality of life.
Source: Advisory Report Proposing Changes to Regulations and National Minimum Standards April 2003, National Care Standards Commission (0191 233 3600)
Links: Report (pdf) | NCSC press release
Date: 2003-May
The Northern Ireland Executive set out its objectives for the health and personal social services in 2003-04.
Source: Priorities for Action 2003/2004: Planning priorities and actions for the health and personal social services, Northern Ireland Executive (028 9052 0500)
Links: Report (pdf) | Press release
Date: 2003-Feb
Tackling age discrimination must be pushed higher up the health and social care agenda, a report argued. It said that older people could miss out on vital services because of a lack of expertise by providers in identifying age discrimination.
Source: Ros Levenson, Auditing Age Discrimination: A practical approach to promoting equality in health and social care, King s Fund (020 7307 2591)
Links: Summary (pdf) | KF press release | Help the Aged press release
Date: 2003-Feb
The government began consultation on changes to care home regulations and national minimum standards relating to adult placement carers, following a review in which concerns were expressed over the widened scope of regulation. (Adult placement services are designed to allow vulnerable adults access to family and community life.)
Source: Care Standards Act 2000: Changes proposed to regulations and national minimum standards relating to adult placements, Department of Health (08701 555455)
Links: Links removed by DH
Date: 2003-Feb
Statistics were published on referrals, assessments and packages of care for adults provided by councils with social services responsibilities in England in 2001-02.
Source: Community Care Statistics 2001-2002: Referrals, Assessments and Packages of Care for Adults, Department of Health (08701 555455)
Links: Report (pdf) | Summary
See also: Journal of Social Policy Volume 31/3, Digest 123, paragraph 5.1
Date: 2003-Jan