People in Wolverhampton are being encouraged to help shape the future of adult social care.
The Independent Commission on Adult Social Care is considering how adult social care should change to meet the needs of current and future generations, and to make recommendations for reform.
As part of this, it has launched its Big Conversation on Care, giving people across the country the opportunity to be involved from the start and share their views on what a ‘National Care Service’ in England could look like.
To get involved, people are encouraged to visit The Big Conversation on Care.
Baroness Casey of Blackstock, who is leading the Independent Commission on Adult Social Care, said: “For too long, we have been stuck in the same cycle: crisis, promises of reform, another review, and then retreat, while the people who need care, and their families, bear the brunt.
“Social care affects every family in this country: whether we need care ourselves, care for someone we love, work in care, or pay for it through our taxes.
“That’s why I am launching The Big Conversation on Care. I want people to help us face the hard questions about how we can build a National Care Service. It is only by listening to the public that we can build the agreement needed for lasting reform.”
Councillor Linda Leach, the City of Wolverhampton Council’s Cabinet Member for Adult Services, added: “Adult social care affects millions of people across the country, supporting older people, and people with disabilities and long term health conditions with a wide range of everyday tasks, helping them to live independently and safely.
“The Big Conversation on Care will help answer some of the most fundamental questions about who care should be for, how we support our families and ultimately how we pay for it.
“It’s vital residents have their say as part of this consultation, and to use their experiences to shape future services and support for the better, so please take a few moments to join the Big Conversation on Care.”
The Big Conversation on Care begins by asking people: when we are older or disabled, or have a serious illness, who should support us and how? People can also talk about what support they need and how they would like to receive this, share their own ideas and vote on other people’s suggestions.
Feedback via the Big Conversation will be considered alongside other evidence gathered by the Commission, which will be talking to people who have experience of using, and who work in, social care, and help inform its recommendations to Government on the future of adult social care.