The Department of Health has published a 10-year strategic plan
to deliver much needed reform within adult social care.
An initial delivery plan has also been published setting out what
actions will be taken over the next three years, along with
timeframes for delivery.
The aim of these plans is to reform how adult social care and
support is delivered and experienced across Northern Ireland with
a focus on independence, choice, equity, quality, innovation,
prevention, early intervention, and preparedness for the future,
to enable people in need of care and support to live fulfilling
lives in their communities.
Health Minister said: “The severe pressures
within adult social care and support services in Northern Ireland
are well known.
“Challenges with workforce recruitment and retention, increased
demand for social care services, greater complexity of need, and
delayed hospital discharges are leading to growing pressure on
budgets and impacting on the capacity of services to respond to
need.
“We therefore can't just keep doing more of the same. We need
different approaches, including a greater focus on earlier
preventative measures and more community-based support, as well
as finding more efficient ways to deliver services including
through the use of technology where appropriate. We also need to
focus on ways of attracting, retaining, supporting and developing
the social care workforce. My Department has already published a
10-year Social Care Workforce Strategy, and I remain fully
committed to funding the Real Living Wage at the earliest
affordable opportunity.
“The plans that my Department have published today are intended
to deliver the vital reform needed to respond to this complex
combination of challenges.
“The plans are a careful balance of ambition and realism in the
current financial climate. We have sought to prioritise actions
which we consider are either the most necessary or have the
potential to have the greatest impact.”
They include:
• Undertaking an examination of the current approach
to the delivery of Homecare to determine what changes can/should
be made to better meet the needs of those with care and support
needs;
• Working to develop a comprehensive preventative
adult care/support framework that will help enable people to
remain safe, healthy, well and with purpose in the place they
call home;
• Fully embracing and maximising the capability of
digital/technology/AI solutions to support traditional social
care service delivery options, including harnessing the potential
of assistive and adaptive technology to enable people to exercise
choice and control over their care and support;
• Improving the uptake of Self-Directed Support (SDS)
options.
Minister Nesbitt added: “Social care is fundamentally
preventative in nature and therefore is a vital element of my
shift left vision and Neighbourhood Model of care.
“It plays a critical role in maintaining the health and wellbeing
of individuals and communities by addressing needs early and
reducing reliance on and demand for more intensive and more
expensive health and social care services.
“These plans taken together provide a roadmap for the reform of
our social care system over the next decade. Success will depend
on close partnership and cooperation from both the statutory and
independent sectors, and of course, a collective willingness to
advance the reform agenda.
“I am confident, however, that with the required commitment and
leadership, we can ensure we have a person-centred,
strengths-based social care sector that is fit for the future and
capable of providing better outcomes for all.”
Both the 10-year Strategic Plan and the three-year Delivery Plan
can be read in full at www.health-ni.gov.uk/publications/social-care-collaborative-forum-key-documents.
Notes to editors:
- The Strategic and Delivery Plans were agreed and signed off
by members of the Social Care Collaborative Forum (SCCF), which
is now known as the Social Care Collaborative Reform Board
(SCCRB). It will oversee, guide, direct and facilitate
implementation of the plans with a strong focus on
reform/transformation. Implementation Groups will work in
partnership with the Department to support the implementation of
the Delivery Plan, including providing advice and acting as a
conduit to relevant parts of the adult social care system where
necessary.
- The Department of Health established the Social Care
Collaborative Forum (SCCF) in 2023 to provide strategic advice
and guidance on adult social care and to take forward agreed
actions to support improvement.
- The Strategic Plan contains six priorities. These include
ensuring the citizen is at the heart of decision making,
providing support to unpaid carers, a focus on prevention and
early intervention, examining the current approach to homecare
and care homes, investing in the workforce, and building a
sustainable adult social care and support system.
- The Delivery Plan sets out 33 actions agreed for the first
three years of the Strategic Plan (2025-2028) set against each of
the six strategic priorities.
