A consultation on how care services can be funded in future
| Purpose | Lancashire County Council is expected to reduce its spending by 26% over the coming four years. Although the county council has taken significant actions to reduce its costs, the savings required are so significant that administrative savings on their own will not deliver what is required. In the area of adult social care the county council has to actively consider a number of actions, including: raising the charges people are asked to pay for services; reviewing and possibly reducing fees the county council pays for care services; and raising the Fair Access to Care Services (FACS) criteria we use which will reduce the number of people eligible for support. We are asking you to let us have your views about these important issues; to contribute to our thinking about what the least worst options might be in considering what to do and what aspects of county council services should be protected. |
|---|---|
| Subject |
Priorities for social care services Adults with additional needs Carers Older people |
| Commissioned by | Adult & Community Services |
| Geographic area |
All of Lancashire |
|---|---|
| Method |
Community conferences/workshops/visioning event Questionnaire - online Questionnaire - postal Questionnaire - telephone Written consultation |
| Consultation with |
Black and minority ethnic groups Carers (social care) Community or voluntary group Faith communities General public Men Older people (aged over 65) Parents/carers People experiencing mental health issues People who misuse drugs/alcohol People with learning disabilities People with physical and/or sensory disabilities Public authorities Rural communities Service users Special interest group Staff Unemployed people Women |
| Date | 06/12/2010 - 28/02/2011 |
| Undertaken by | Business Intelligence Group |
Results
| Number in sample | 2400 |
|---|---|
| Number of responses | 722 |
| Response rate | 30% |
| Key findings | Following the consultations, we have had to make some key decisions on how we are going to deliver social care across Lancashire in the future. As a result, one of the main changes is that we have raised the threshold for access to social care and will now support those in the 'critical' and 'substantial' categories but will no longer include those in the 'moderate' category. All those currently in the 'moderate' category will be reviewed and it is likely that some will move into the 'substantial' category as a result. The second main change is that people who can afford to pay will be asked to contribute more to their care. However, 42% of our customers do not pay anything towards the cost of their care services and will continue to pay nothing under the changes. We have listened carefully to the views of those we have consulted and have made some changes, but the reality is we cannot afford to deliver the services in the same way and to the same level as we have in the past. We have made some alterations to our original proposals after hearing your views: Service users facing higher charges will have increases limited to a maximum of £30 per week in the first year and a further £30 in the second year, rather than being capped at £50 each year as was originally proposed We will put greater emphasis on identifying problems before they escalate and will invest £6 million in this area ¿ prevention as opposed to cure Fees paid to providers of care homes will be frozen for existing residents at current levels rather than being reduced by 4%. Fees will be reduced only for new residential placements by 4% and new nursing care patients by 3% from April 2011 |
Contact information
For more information about this research contact:
Angela Esslinger, Steve Wontner-Smith, David Burnham
01772 530099
Email: ASCconsultation@lancashire.gov.uk
Related information
http://www3.lancashire.gov.uk/corporate/atoz/a_to_z/service.asp?u_id=3429&tab=1