Monmouthshire County Council has identified the need to support vulnerable people in the county as one of its priorities, as highlighted in the council’s annual report, ‘Improving Social Care in Monmouthshire’.
The report gives a view of how well social services are performing and what the priorities are for the future. Alongside supporting vulnerable people, education and the economy are key targets for the council.
Simon Burch. Monmouthshire County Council’s Chief Officer for Social Care and Health, said:
“All public services are operating in a challenging financial environment at the moment. But rather than cutting services, here in Monmouthshire, we’re in the business of finding new ways to improve what we do.”
Cllr Geoff Burrows, Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Health added:
“We are not reacting to change but actively driving it, and there is a difference. We can be justly proud of the services we have provided to date for the people of this county but the needs and aspirations of the people who seek our help are changing and we must continue to plan to meet those changes.”
Amongst the areas singled out for praise in the report are improvements in the timeliness of child protection processes and the development of a new respite care model for people with learning disabilities. And amongst the areas for further work is the need to work more closely with private care home providers so that the council can better understand the pressures they are facing.
The report identifies ten priority areas that the council will work to in 2011-12. This includes the establishment of rapid response teams with the NHS as part of the Gwent Frailty model. These teams will put services in place within two to four hours to help minimise unnecessary hospital admissions amongst older people and allow them to receive care at home. Other priority areas include protecting vulnerable adults and children from harm and improvements to the fostering service.
Many of these priorities are about joint working with other organisations. Simon Burch adds:
“We want to have more conversations with service users, carers, partners and communities. We can only deliver excellent social services if we work well with others.”
A copy of the report can be downloaded from the council’s website at www.monmouthshire.gov.uk/socialservicesreport. Copies are also available for inspection at the one stop shops in Abergavenny, Caldicot, Chepstow and Monmouth.
