Ayrshire social work service sees calls surge

It’s been a dramatically busy first year for the new all-Ayrshire out-of-hours social work response service.
And figures show it is reaching far more people than when Ayrshire relied on a west of Scotland standby service.

The Ayrshire service was launched in March 2012, after all three councils withdrew from the west of Scotland service.

There were 9,638 referrals from out-of-hours to day service in the first year – an almost 80 per cent increase on the previous year.

The new service made 356 visits – an 85 per cent increase from the previous year. And it is reaching the most rural areas of Ayrshire.

Child protection is a priority, with a total of 59 child protection initial investigations completed.

And the service provides ongoing support at weekends to families and vulnerable adults, reducing the need for admissions to care settings. Based at Crosshouse Hospital and managed by East Ayrshire Council, the service has a partnership arrangement with Ayrshire Doctors on Call, who provide support in call handling when the out-of-hours service is busy.

The location has also meant timely responses to A&E and maternity cases.

Councillor Iain Linton is East Ayrshire’s spokesperson for community health and wellbeing.

He said: “Having a joint service that is focused on the needs of Ayrshire residents has greatly enhanced it.

“One of the most significant benefits has been the increase in access to services for communities in the south of both East and South Ayrshire councils.

“The service has developed and adapted well over its first year and is an excellent example of partnership working across all three Ayrshire councils.”

Continuing in the partnership vein, East Ayrshire has approved plans to develop a tender for an Ayrshire-wide Joint Equipment Service with North and South Ayrshire councils and NHS Ayrshire and Arran.

A business case for a joint social work sensory impairment service is also being worked on with North and South Ayrshire Councils, and could be established next year.