CEO comment on the Care Quality Commission’s State of Care annual assessment

“The Care Quality Commission’s annual State of Care assessment rightly acknowledges the efforts of frontline professionals who, despite funding and workforce challenges, continue to deliver a good standard of care. “What is concerning about this year’s assessment is the varying access to care provision in England. The Care Quality Commission has found that ineffective local collaboration is preventing people from accessing community services that would help avoid unnecessary hospital admissions. Our own recently published research, Facilitating Care Insight to Develop Caring Economies, explored local care infrastructures. We found that current national policy perpetuates an outdated view of social care. New models of care will require more granular data to make informed decisions about where resources should be deployed on the ground. The Government should support commissioners, providers and innovators to solicit a better understanding of when and how individuals interact with the wider care ecosystem and invest in a new national data analytic capability. “The forthcoming social care green paper must factor in local differences, advocate measures to aid independent living in later life and set out a sustainable long-term plan to prevent care injustices. One way to help realise this ambition is to establish a Care Covenant or renewed settlement involving everyone in our society as a mechanism for real change.”