More home care demanded by social care bosses

More home care and a shift away from long-term support in care homes is recommended by the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services in England (ADASS).

A report by ADASS calls for a down-sizing of care homes with more care provided to people in their own homes.

ADASS president James Bullion stated in the report: ‘We have the opportunity to be radical, to be person-centred and to be transformative. We must seize this opportunity with both hands’.

‘Down-sizing’ care homes

The ADASS report stated: ‘For too long care has been built around organisations and buildings such as hospitals, day care centres and care homes.

‘The future must be about what works for us as individuals and our families, with a whole series of local organisations working together to organise care and support that enables us to work, stay independent at home, and be as engaged in our communities as we want.

‘More of this care is likely to be provided in our own homes and will be integrated into specialist housing and care packages akin to current extra care provision.

‘Any short-term support (particularly in the immediate post-Covid-19 period) for particular types of care provision should be tied to a commitment to participate in the reform conversation and where necessary to downsizing particular types of provision, such as potentially some forms of care home provision’.

‘Home First’

The report stated that ‘reform must be underpinned by the Home First principle’, with ‘a much stronger emphasis’ on some existing types of care and support which are housing based, such as ‘supported living’ and ‘extra care housing’, as well as new and innovative forms of care.

‘In turn, this may mean a shift away from existing types of residential care, for example, a lesser reliance on long stay, larger scale care homes although they may continue to play a key role in reablement and short-term care.’