Charities To Lobby For Social Care Reform

Three major charities are lobbying the political party conferences to bring about a change in the social care system.

Scope, Age Concern England and Mencap are for the first time teaming up for a fringe event at each of the main conferences to highlight the problems experienced by disabled and older people with the current social care system.

The three charities will focus on lack of information, advice and advocacy to enable disabled and older people to informed choices about social care; the postcode lottery for service; lack of choice and control over where and how disabled and older people live their lives; and the inconsistent cost of services.

The charities are making a series of suggestions for reform, including creating an outcome-based assessment process tailored to an individual’s specific needs and creating a statutory right for older and disabled people to control their own support, giving a clear legal right to individual budgets to increase people’s choice and control.

Dame Jo Williams, chief executive of learning disability charity, Mencap, said: ‘The current social care system is letting down some of our most vulnerable citizens. We are joining forces with Age Concern and Scope to highlight the impact that a severely under-funded social care is having on the lives of disabled and older people and to propose some solutions to one of the biggest problems facing our society today.’