Councillors in Neath Port Talbot have re-affirmed their commitment to modernising older people’s services in the county borough. On 16th December Council gave their backing to a policy which sets out a vision for how health, well-being, social care and support services for older people could look in years to come.
The document, entitled ‘Choices for Living, For Life‘, will provide a framework for future services and identify strategic directions for their long-term provision. It will aim to reflect the expectations and needs of future generations as well as the predicted growth in this age group. The emphasis will be on preserving dignity, whilst promoting independence, providing quality services for all who need them and offering freedom of choice.
To achieve this, the policy advocates a change of emphasis in the way that services are currently received. This could mean that more older people would have appropriate support to enable them to stay in their own homes for longer, or to live in sheltered housing schemes in a place that they can call their own. This is in keeping with feedback from many older people that their preference for the future would be to stay in their own homes and communities with care and support provided to them in that setting if need be
The policy recognises that change of this magnitude is long-term and that it will take commitment from all stakeholders.
Council Leader, Ali Thomas said:
“It is no secret that I object to the depressing and inaccurate stereotype of older people ending up as totally dependant, so I welcome the direction that this policy takes.
“The policy is called ‘Choices for Living For Life‘ because we believe that choice is not a privilege but a fundamental right, whatever your age. This document represents a real opportunity for future generations of older people in Neath Port Talbot to exercise greater choice and independence in the way they live.
“Now that we know how we want these services to look in the future, we need to work out how we are going to achieve this.
“The next step is to engage with all interested parties in order to deliver improved services.”
A report setting out detailed proposals will be worked up by officers over the coming months and will be brought back to Cabinet in 2010.
