A Joint Statement on the National Care Service, and the need to put people at the centre of social care reform, has been delivered to Ministers.

Drawn from proposals from organisations working across health and social care, people who access social care, and unpaid carers, the Joint Statement calls on the Scottish Parliament and Scottish Government to ensure that the voices of lived experience and the third and independent sectors are at the forefront of the proposed National Care Service for Scotland.

It is essential that the expertise of people with lived experience of accessing – or trying to access – social care, and the third and independent sectors are a key part of design, planning, evaluation, and implementation of any proposed service.

The full Joint Statement and a list of the 145 signatories is available here.

Joint Statement: put people at the centre of social care reform

As organisations and individuals connected to health and social care across Scotland, we call on the Scottish Government and Scottish Parliament to ensure that disabled people, people living with long term conditions, and unpaid carers are at the centre of the National Care Service, and to value and involve the expertise of the third and independent sectors.

We are united in our desire to see meaningful progress in social care. We have an opportunity to embed equality, human rights, and co-production in the proposed National Care Service. It is essential that people with lived experience of accessing – or trying to access – social care and the third and independent sectors are heard, in order to achieve transformational and positive change that works for everyone.

Without prioritising the voices of lived experience and valuing the third and independent sectors, the National Care Service cannot meet the requirements of disabled people, people living with long term conditions, and unpaid carers.

We cannot miss this opportunity.

We call on the Scottish Government to ensure that the National Care Service:

• Embeds co-production throughout the design, development, and delivery of the National Care Service,  with resources and funding provided to enable co-production.
• Supports and works directly with third and independent health and social care organisations as equal and valued partners.
• Explicitly integrates equality and human rights across all parts of the social care system.
• Empowers rights holders (people who access social care, unpaid carers, social care workers) to know, understand and claim their rights.
• Revises current commissioning and procurement processes, to better support people accessing and providing social care and support.
• Implements the recommendations of the Independent Review of Adult Social Care, with a particular focus on addressing the implementation gap between policy and practice with Self-directed Support.
• Ensures that the voices of children, young people and their families are prioritised, and tailored support services are appropriately supported and funded.

End of document.