Suffolk County Council’s Adult Social Care service was rated Good overall by the CQC

After an intense inspection which started this summer by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), Suffolk County Council has been awarded an overall rating of “Good” for the quality of its Adult Social Care services.

It is one of the first councils nationwide to achieve this standard.

They were one of 5 councils that volunteered to take part in Local Authority Assessment Pilot, helping the CQC develop the "new model of inspection to help assess councils against the requirements of the Care Act."

This model is set to roll out across 153 Local Authorities that have responsibilities for Adult Social Care being inspected by the commission.

The results for Suffolk

The CQC notes the following strengths for Suffolk County Council, all of which are focused on their Adult Social Care services.

People orientated comments

• "Overall feedback from people was positive in relation to the approach of front-line staff, and the care and support provided."Good Support with staff well-being, learning and development, and career progression"Various Teams working together."All teams knew their communities well and understood the needs of people using services."There was a clear focus on prevention and public health."Positive and mature strategic integrated work with health partners.

Comments on Suffolk County Councils Self-improvements

• "Data was gathered and used to inform the strategic approach," with a focus "on areas for improvement and to drive action."
• "Systems and governance were in place to enable the local authority to assess and understand how well they were performing as an organisation and act on it.
• "A culture of learning and improving from incidents was embedded.
• "The local authority digital care partnership."

Comments on the Technology Suffolk County Council uses

• "Technology such as sensors and falls prevention equipment were used in people’s own homes to help people live independently and provide reassurance to carers.
• "Plans to develop further digital solutions to continue to support people in creative ways such as plans to use virtual reality technology with people living with dementia. "

Improvements

The CQC also commented on some areas that could use improvements such as Customer First which is the initial point of contact for the local authority.

The assessment found some delays in this service.

They also found there were difficulties in confirming suitable accommodation for some people. The gaps identified include those in dementia care, nursing care and those with complex needs.

As well as the need to make improvements in partnership working regarding communication and "how systems joined up together" to improve "information sharing, learning, and give a better understanding of people’s needs in local communities."

James Bullion, CQC’s chief inspector of adult social care and integrated care, said "Suffolk County Council should be really pleased with this assessment, and it means they have a great foundation on which to build more improvements."

Councillor Beccy Hopfensperger works in adult care at Suffolk County Council remarked these are "fantastic results" and they will not be taking their rating for granted and will aim to improve.

A full version of the CQC report will be available on their website after publication.

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