Transforming the Adult

Social Care Workforce

7th December 2010Virginia McCririck – DH - SW

To ensure that people achieve their maximum potential, have full and purposeful lives, and exercise real choice and control over how they do this with a ‘confident, enabled and equipped social care workforce’.

Vision for Social Care

Approach in the South West• Established a Regional Adult Social Care Workforce

Strategy Board• JIP commissioned Skills for Care to support a working

group to the Board• Funding to Skills for Care to implement a range of

projects through the 7 Care Partnerships• Support to Local Authorities to develop an Integrated

Local Area Workforce Strategy (INLAWS)• Build capacity to undertake workforce planning.• Skills for Care National Programme linked to new

Qualification and Credit Framework

Key Projects• Support care providers to undertake workforce planning

using 6 Step Approach• Local Exchange Networks to share knowledge about

changes amongst care providers – eg, assistive technology, self-directed care, re-ablement.

• Programme of LEAN to care providers• Networking to the voluntary and community sector• User Led Organisation Workforce Strategy project

What do we need to do more of?Integrated Local Area Workforce Strategy- requires a better

understanding of:• projected demand for services from commissioners• the potential for assistive technology to keep people

independent in their own homes• full impact of service re-design activities on workforce

demand• clinical governance requirements for social care delivery• how to achieve improved integration of the health and

social care workforce across care pathways.

Dementia – key workforce requirements

• Impact of demand and service redesign to establish workforce levels and commissioning levels for training

• Early signposting to appropriate services, with staff specifically trained to support people with dementia

• Good quality training that ensures:– Better understanding of how to keep people independent– Ability to combat fatalistic attitude, engender a positive

approach to finding solutions and recognise that it is possible to “live well with dementia”.

– Ability to see the world from the person’s perspective – this is critical to building communication skills and solution finding.

– Appreciation of the impact upon carers and understanding their needs and where they can get help from.

– Able to use assistive technology appropriately• Quality assured training providers