News: Reshaping Care for Older People: Engaging the Independent Sector - The Baseline Survey Results
12th December 2012
Reshaping Care for Older People: Engaging the Independent Sector - The Baseline Survey Results
In March 2012, the Scottish Government via the Joint Improvement Team, agreed to provide funding to Scottish Care, the principal representative body for the independent sector, for a one year project in order to ‘support the independent sector in engaging with the Reshaping Care and Change Fund agendas’. A baseline survey was undertaken over the summer click for the the resulting report and executive summary
The overarching aim of the Engaging the Independent Sector project, is to ‘ensure that the sector is a full partner at both national strategic policy level and at a local level, engaged fully across the change fund plans, future joint commissioning strategies, health and social care integration and other key policy drivers such as self-directed support.’ We believe that meaningful involvement of the Independent Sector in the Reshaping Care agenda is pivotal to ensuring that local plans are informed by an understanding of current service provision and the reality for service providers in developing and delivering future services.
We are in dialogue with the Joint Improvement Team about ways to further develop the profile of the Independent Sector and hope this report will enable us to engage with the wider Reshaping Care audience. We are very keen to discuss this report further with relevant parties and would be pleased to receive a response from you. We hope there may be some opportunity later this year for collective discussion at a national or regional level, but in the meantime will be very happy to meet with people on a local basis.
We would particularly draw your attention to number of the reports key findings below:
· Although generally positive about the level of engagement by the sector in RCOP, more detailed comments from providers, indicate a disquiet and negativity about the degree of engagement along with a wide variation across partnership areas in the level and extent of engagement.
· Evidence suggests that engagement with the sector has improved recently. This improvement may reflect the direct impact of increased representation by independent sector development staff funded directly by local partnerships.
· There is work to be undertaken with providers in relation to communicating the representation that is taking place on their behalf.
· The responses suggest that further efforts need to be made to ensure that providers have opportunities to discuss the implications for their service.
· The consistency and clarity of the supports required to assist the sector, provide a set of clear priorities and agenda for the forthcoming year and include; establishing development officer/effective local representation; developing a suite of case studies and evidence of independent sector services which support RCOP; providing clarity about motivation to change; support a shift in relationship between sectors towards shared outcomes.
· Acknowledge and address the barriers identified through the survey, particularly the strength of feeling underpinning many of the cultural barriers.
· The many positive and practical responses by providers identifying what they can contribute to the RCOP agenda, provides a strong platform on which to develop case studies and evidence examples of good practice.
There is a clear list of areas on which providers would like more information and this provides a sound basis for dissemination and communication of these important topics in the coming weeks and months. We will also seek to identify which partnerships require, and would be open to further support.
We look forward to hearing from you.
Gloria JOAN
Gloria McLoughlin Joan Mitchell
RCOP Independent Sector National Lead JIT action Team Member
gloria.mcloughlin@scottishcare.org joanjohnmitchell@btinternet.com
Follow us on