A number of key organisations within the care industry have united to call on the sector to “rise to the challenge” of delivering quality care for all.
More than 100 people gathered at the House of Commons on Tuesday (April 29) for the official launch of the campaign.
Those leading the Quality Care Campaign include the English Community Care Association (ECCA), National Care Association (NCA), the Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) and Boots, together with the independent accreditation company RDB Star Rating.
Dame Denise Platt, chairman of CSCI, welcomed the campaign saying: “This campaign really matters. We have to raise the game for everyone, and that is what this campaign is about”.
Martin Green, Chief Executive of ECCA, described the campaign as a “cross-sector initiative to challenge people’s perceptions of residential care.” He said: “The campaign will fight for a world class service by calling for a five-star workforce, five-star regulation, five star commissioning and five star funding”.
Nadra Ahmed, chair of the NCA stated: “We have to work towards a model of care which inspires confidence. A campaign like this has an opportunity to bring back the confidence of the public. We need to create a positive image of social care that is so desperately needed.”
And SCIE chair Allan Bowman said: “SCIE is delighted to be part of this campaign because our remit is to identify the best practice in social care and promote its adoption across the whole of the UK.”
The Quality Care Campaign will promote quality provision by highlighting case studies of best practice, including work by schools to encourage students to consider careers in the care sector.
Among such case studies is Hove Park School in East Sussex, which has given more than 150 students direct experience of working in local care homes as part of its Health and Social Care Curriculum. Its staff are also working with the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust to deliver the scheme nationally.
Tim Barclay, Headteacher of Hove Park School said: “The work we do [with the care sector] helps us take our students out of school into real environments where they meet real people. These opportunities are crucial in terms of challenging people’s perceptions and in engaging students with vulnerable people and understanding opportunities about their careers. This is why we are passionate about joining this campaign.”
The launch at Portcullis House was sponsored by Celia Barlow MP.
The campaign’s strategy is to influence the new Care Quality Commission to enable social care providers to deliver a quality care service by:
- Placing residential care at the heart of communities and recognising it as a positive career choice for young learners at school
- Ensuring every home complies with minimum regulatory standards
- Assuring public confidence in Residential Care by challenging negative perceptions and stereotypes and highlighting the vital role care homes play in our society
- Commissioning care on quality and not cost
- Establishing robust costing models that enable providers to deliver quality care
- Ensuring every home complies with minimum regulatory standards
