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England’s 1.47 million adult social care staff have been asked to help shape policies aimed at ensuring they are better recognised and valued by their employers.
The Minister for Care Caroline Dinenage has called on the adult social care workforce for their views on employee benefits and in the sector, as part of a Government drive to improve recruitment and retention.
Ministers want to know whether their employer offers any benefits or reward schemes, if this influenced their choice of job or makes them feel valued, and if there’s anything else they’d like to see being offered. Examples of schemes offered as part of an employee benefits package include:
• Flexible working arrangements
• ‘Employee of the month’ awards
• Cycle to work schemes
• Discounts on shopping, holidays, cinema, gym, dining and more
Speaking at the ADASS Spring Seminar, the Minister for Care Caroline Dinenage said:
“Many adult social care providers provide outstanding packages of employee benefits, but it is time to ensure better access across the country. Our adult social care staff deserve to be recognised and feel valued for the incredible, life-changing work they do, and I know that this isn’t always the case.
“I want our brilliant adult social care workforce to share examples of employee benefits and rewards schemes offered by their employers. This is their chance to have their say and help shape national policies that could benefit staff working across the sector.”
A huge number of people with ‘mental impairments’ such as learning disabilities, dementia and Parkinson’s are missing out on discounts on their council tax bills, due to a lack of awareness.
An investigation by MoneySavingExpert.com revealed that many people with a ‘severe mental impairment’ have been eligible for a council tax discount for years. In England, Scotland and Wales, if you live on your own and have a severe mental impairment you don’t have to pay council tax and you can claim back any that you have paid while you were living alone. If you live with an adult with severe mental impairment you are entitled to a 25 per cent council tax discount.
Martin Lewis, founder of MoneySavingExpert.com, said: “Many of the most vulnerable within our society, those who are living with a ‘severe mental impairment’, have been eligible for a council tax discount for years, but sadly, across Britain they have rarely been about told it – meaning they’ve missed out on money that could’ve transformed their quality of life.
To read the full story visit the homecare website.
Accident and emergency departments in hospitals are seeing a rise in visits from people with dementia, who often require ‘unnecessary’ short hospital stays, according to new figures.
The Dementia Intelligence Network, part of Public Health England report revealed the rate of emergency admissions to hospital for people with dementia in 2017-2018 was 3,609 per 100,000 population aged 65 years and over, an increase from 3,482 in 2016-2017.
Sally Copley, director of policy, campaigns and partnerships at Alzheimer’s Society, has blamed the increased A&E visits on a lack of high-quality dementia care.
She said: “These often avoidable stays in hospital – even if they’re just overnight – can be incredibly harmful to a person with dementia, as well as draining millions from the NHS. They’re an obvious symptom that there just isn’t enough high-quality dementia care available in local communities.”
In addition, the report showed less people living with dementia were benefiting from care plan reviews and that a lower proportion of people with dementia had their care plan review documented in primary care notes in 2018 when compared with 2017.
For more on this story please visit the homecare.co.uk website.
A woodland in the Highlands is the first in Scotland to become dementia friendly.
The area around the woodland cabin has been resurfaced to make it easier to walk around and new dementia friendly signage has been installed on the compost toilet and outdoor sink.
In addition, the areas around benches have been made wheelchair accessible to stimulate conversations and activities and staff and volunteers have been given uniform so people know who to approach for assistance.
Scotland’s walking charity, Paths for All, been working to help make Evanton Community Woodland accessible for people living with dementia.
Ian Findlay, its chief officer said: “Improving outdoor spaces for people living with dementia is important to ensure they can get outside to benefit from sunlight, fresh air and sensory stimulation.
To read more about this story visit the homecare.co.uk website.
