Chris Potter
An Insight into the Covid-19 Inquiry
A few weeks ago, key figures happened to give evidence to the Covid-19 inquiry. This helped to look at the decisions that wee made and it also looked at political governance. There were links that went to the hearing transcripts and it also highlighted written statements. Witnesses previously gave to the inquiry and they are set out below. You can also find other documents in the document archive. The hearings have been covered in the press extensively. Martin Reynolds who is the former principal secretary has come out to say that more has to be done to make sure that mistakes do not happen again and that history does not end up repeating itself.
This weeks’ evidence has prompted a lot of press articles to be released about the inquiry itself. People are also questioning the purpose of it all as well. They have come out to say that they do need an inquiry but right now this isn’t it. They have said that they need to offer way more than just lurid revelations. The timetable for upcoming hearings are taking place and they are also listed a week in advance. The Module 2 hearings are going to carry on until mid-December. If you work in private nursing then this will have affected you quite a lot. It didn’t just impact the mental health of social workers though, because it also affected those who offer bespoke care packages as well. When you look at Module 6 on the care sector, you will soon see that it is yet to start. Public hearings are due to start in the coming weeks but at the end of the day, people don’t have much hope that a positive change is going to be made. If you want to keep up with this story then it is being reported across numerous channels.
The government have now published their response to the consultation regarding holiday entitlement for part-time workers. They have also covered irregular holiday hours as well. In summary, it would seem that they are going to introduce a bit of an accrual method to try and calculate how holiday entitlement is going to work. They are doing this at 12.07% and they are looking at it in terms of a pay period for irregular hours. They are also going to try and cover part-time and part-year workers too. The government are now proposing the new legislation and this is going to apply from the 1st of January next year. Anthony Collins Solicitors have come out with a response. If you work in homecare or if you want to find out more about bespoke care packages and how they affect social workers then this is going to come into it as well. If you want to find out more about private nursing and mental health then make sure that you follow this story. At the end of the day, it is so important to make sure that people are given the help that they need because if they don’t then this could have drastic consequences for the future. With this, it’s important to know that a UK-wide working time regulation will apply to try and limit things as much as possible. With that in mind, it’s also important to know that further changes are going to apply and that this is going to have an even bigger impact on the sector as a whole. If you want to keep up to date with this story then the best thing you can do is try and look into the holiday entitlement policy for yourself so you can stay up to date with everything.
Cambridgeshire county Council have come under fire as they have spent £85,000 in a single week on the social bill for a single child. This is a sum of over £4.42 million a year on a single child. What did the chief executive have to say about this? GB News have said that the bill is around 10 times the amount that it would take to hold a violent prisoner in a prison. A lot of reviews have been held by visitors as well as by authorities. They have found tat since then the fund has been dropped by a significant amount and that now it adds up to around £30,000 in a week. This is still around £1.5 million in a single year.
Stephen Moir has come out to say that other situations are happening all across the upper-tier authorities. This is again, all across England. Of course, the placement is going to mean that changes are made because amounts of money like this are well and truly unbelievable. There are six young people and because of the complex needs that they have the placement is being adjusted. If you work in homecare or in private nursing, or if you offer bespoke care packages for social workers in an attempt to support mental health then you will understand what a huge blow this is. Currently this is being replicated across the upper-tier authorities across England. The system is one that, when you look at it from a financial perspective, a crisis nationally. If you want to find out more about this or if you want to find out if there are any changes that have to be made in order to try and support those who need it without compromising others.
Less than one third of adults who are over the age of 60 now have a clear plan in place when it comes to later life care. A lot of them have come out to say that they haven’t even given their later life a second thought. Studies have been done and they have found a very clear distinction between people and in some ways this could even be perceived as being reluctance. If you work in homecare, or if you offer bespoke care packages and work in private nursing then you will know what a major blow this is. Social workers who offer to support mental health are also going to be affected by this as the burden will fall to them eventually. Less than a third of adults have a plan in place and research has shown that this is because they do not want to lose their independence. When you break down the research you will see that this is highlighted even more by the fact that 25% have other things t worry about and that 62% say that they just don’t want to think about not being able to do the things that they love. 68% have come out to say that they would resist any attempt to move into a care home as well.
This shows a few things. It shows that more has to be done to make sure that people get the support that they need and that they are also given help and support when it comes to life planning in general. If this is not the case then it looks like the issue is going to keep on getting worse and that eventually this number is going to increase further. Keep up to date with this story if you want to know more by following it online.
If you work in private nursing, homecare, social workers groups or even if you support bespoke care packages for mental health then you should know that the NHS Workforce Plan isn’t going to have an impact on the care crisis at all. Healthcare strikes are hitting headlines once more and they have warned that the NHS Workforce Plan is going to miss the mark. It is going to have a huge impact on the skills crisis as well. Global Public Policy Directors have come out to say their thoughts on the matter. The crisis in the NHS isn’t going to be resolved and even though the plan has been designed to try and give more sustainable access, it’s safe to say that the impact of the tactics could easily take 15 years or more to be felt truly. APSCo have highlighted in the past that they need access to trained healthcare professionals and that they need to be widely available. Of course, the conversations that people have had have really highlighted a number of changes that could be required. This includes a plan to make sure that there’s not only enough, but also an appropriate amount of training. Pathways need to enable new routes and they also need to help people to go into healthcare where possible. This is going to help them to add new things to the mix and it is also going to mean a major positive change for the future industry. Who knows what the future is going to hold, but right now it seems that a lot is being done to try and make sure that the NHS workforce plan is updated as it should be. If you want to follow this story, sign up to updates with the NHS.
What do you need to know about the revised code of practice? If you work in homecare or if you like to offer bespoke care packages to social workers and those who work in mental health then you will be glad to know that private nursing is on the rise. Chris Garner who is the managing director of HR employment and law has come out to say how providers can easily remain compliant with all of the changing laws. This is especially the case when it comes to international requirement and health visas. Hiring from overseas is going to still be a super important component when it comes to operators and their hiring strategy. For this reason, it’s so important that companies take steps to ensure that they are up to date on the guidelines and that they also understand the legal position that they are in. Every operator, at the end of the day, should be familiar with the code. They should also understand its principles and the guidelines regarding it. Countries that relate to non-healthcare related workers should not be recruited. There are a lot of updates to this version. The Ethical Recruiters list has had a bit of an update too. There is a new knowledge test for recruiters who wish to apply or even feature on the list as this helps to keep the standards very high. Of course, where possible, it seems that care home operators have to work with recruiters so that they can show their commitment to ethics. Who knows what the future holds but one thing is for certain, that more has to be done to make sure that the revised code of practice has enough weight to really make a change to the sector.
If you work in homecare or if you want to go into private nursing and into bespoke care packages, then you should now that social workers and mental health workers are trying to make changes to the visa system. King’s College London have said that they have sent out a new report and this is to try and follow the extension of the health care visa. They want to include the number of visas that have been granted. The study has looked at the experiences of the figures and they have also focused on a lot of stakeholder groups. Researchers who have carried out the work have spoken to a lot of care experts, and they have also worked with sector experts as well. The report has also identified key areas of learning, and this includes the factors that have determined whether or not they should become sponsors or whether they are recruited internationally. International recruitment is one of the main reasons why people move to the UK.
The channels and the systems regarding international recruitment have been navigated time and time again. How care people look for work within the UK and how they maintain the UK visa and immigration requirements has to change. Information and support have very much been sought after regarding the immigration process and it seems that immigration requirements are the cost of it all. Awareness and adherence to the general code of practice is also helping to promote a much more ethical practice. Pastoral support and workplace introduction rights are also helping the UK within the care sector as well. The vulnerability of care workers seems like such an unethical practice but that is why changes have to happen right now so that more can be done to give support to those who really need it.
The government have worked very hard to allocate more funding to local authorities. They are doing everything they can to give support to older people and they are also trying to support those who may have disabilities. They want to help those who work in private nursing as well as in homecare and mental health. Those who offer bespoke care packages are going to be supported, as are social workers. The government have allocated a lot of money to helping local authorities as well as older people. They want to help people to live independently and they also want to ensure that people can be safe as much as possible. It has all been delivered jointly by the Department of Health and Social Care. The funding is going to be delivered through the Disabled Facilities Grant and this comes on top of the annual funding that is available right now. Living in your own home after you have experienced an illness or an injury is tough but in this day and age, it is crucial to adapt. When time is limited, the fund is going to help local authorities to do what they must to deal with some of the smaller adaptations, faster. Sometimes, all that happens to stand in the way of someone going home is the fact that their home is not adapted like it should be. This is very good for patients who are in hospital and it also means that people an recover from their hospital stay. There will be more NHS beds for those who truly need them as well and this is great to say the least. Make sure you follow this story if you want to find out more about the current state of healthcare and what could be to come in the coming months.
After revealing that he had been accused of being too negative about the state of social care, it seems that the IGC Chair, who is Mike Padgham has fought back. He has said that it isn’t negative at all to say that social workers deserve more than £15 an hour because well over half of them are earning way less than the national living wage. Mike Padgham has told a conference that it was now time to end the silence regarding social care and that more has to be done to fight for the country and to start looking after the older generation. If you work in private nursing or if you work in mental health supporting social workers then you should know that the homecare sector is in dire need and that those who offer bespoke care packages are struggling to get paid what they are worth.
Failing to act now would be like the government not protecting school buildings as it would put children at risk. It is not fair to assume that the same is happening to social care. At the end of the day, they represent those who are vulnerable and those who do not have a strong voice. Social care providers, do not have a strong voice. If you work as a doctor or if you work as a nurse then you may find that you do in fact have a strong voice. Silence is not good and more people have to stand up and show the world that they want a better rate of pay because if they don’t get it then this could have dire consequences for the entire sector. If you want to find out more about this story then make sure you follow it and that you stay up to date.
