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News release: Call for action as people with sight loss miss out on Self-directed Support

Research by Scotland’s biggest sight loss charity Royal Blind has revealed low awareness among blind and partially sighted people of the Scottish Government’s flagship social care policy.  The findings have prompted fears that people with sight loss who could benefit from Self-directed Support are missing out, and led to a joint call from Royal Blind and Scottish Care for Scottish Ministers to take action to ensure people living with visual impairment are aware of their right to benefit from the policy.

Royal Blind surveyed over 100 people with sight loss to get their views and experiences of Self-directed Support. The charity found that:

    • Almost two thirds of people with sight loss participating in the survey had not heard of Self-directed Support.
    • Only five respondents to the survey had a support plan funded through Self-directed Support.
    • Over 60% of respondents had never been informed of the budget available to them for their care and support.

The research follows previous findings published by Audit Scotland in 2017 which reported that at least 53,000 people were accessing Self-directed Support, but more people should benefit from the policy and more information should be available on how to apply.

Royal Blind and Scottish Care are now calling on the Scottish Government to take further action to raise awareness of Self-directed Support including through providing accessible information on the policy for people with visual impairment. The organisations are also urging local authorities to develop plans to increase access to Self-directed Support for people with visual impairment, including through providing more training to staff on supporting people with sight loss to have the information they need on the policy.

Mark O’Donnell, Chief Executive of Royal Blind and Scottish War Blinded said:

“Self Directed Support is a great policy initiative by the Scottish Government which could benefit thousands of people living with sight loss. That is why it is so disappointing that there appears to be low awareness of the policy among blind and partially sighted people, and also why we are backing the call by Scottish Care for more action to raise awareness that it is available. With the numbers of people with sight loss in Scotland set to increase significantly, it is vital they can access the specialist care they need and have access to Self-directed Support which can help them live well with visual impairment.”

Dr Donald Macaskill, Chief Executive Officer of Scottish Care said:

“Self-directed Support is one of the most progressive pieces of law in Scotland. It gives people choice and control over their care and their lives. It is therefore hugely disappointing that five years on since it started this survey shows that hundreds perhaps thousands of older Scots with a visual impairment they are not benefiting from these rights. The excuses from local authorities and Integrated Joint Boards are running out and we are left with the conclusion that this human rights based policy is being consciously ignored, blocked and underfunded, or that only those who shout the loudest are being given choice and control.

There is little point in having fantastic legislation if there are is a collective failure to put it into practice. There is little point in having rights under the law if the obstacles to exercising those rights are growing every day.

Scotland needs to get serious about the denial of the human rights of our fellow citizens with visual impairment.”

 

ENDS

Note to editors

1.Details of the survey by Royal Blind and Scottish War Blinded:

    • The survey was promoted to people with sight loss using Royal Blind and Scottish War Blinded services in August and September. Responses were from people with visual impairment or a carer or family member on their behalf. There were 110 respondents to the survey, although not all respondents answered all questions.
    • 109 people responded to the question “have you heard of Self-Directed Support.” 68 (62%) said they had not.
    • 81 people answered the question “Are you currently receiving care services” with almost half (39 people) stating that they were.
    • Only 5 respondents said they had a support plan funded through Self-Directed Support. Four of the five people who received care through Self-Directed Support said the system had worked well for them.
    • Around a fifth (19%) of respondents felt SDS was something they could benefit from, while 57% did not know whether they would.
    • Around a third (30%) of respondents said they had been given an explanation of SDS options, while 60% said they had not had the options explained to them.
    • A majority (63%) of respondents had never been informed of the budget available to them for their care and support.

2. Royal Blind is Scotland’s largest visual impairment organisation. We create life changing opportunities for visually impaired children and adults from across Scotland and the rest of the UK with the following services: The Royal Blind School and Learning Hub, Adult Services, Care for Older People, the Scottish Braille Press and Kidscene After School and Holiday Club.www.royalblind.org

3. Royal Blind’s sister charity is Scottish War Blinded. Together, we operate as the Royal Blind Group. Each organisation has its own management, and both are overseen by the Royal Blind Board and Chief Executive.

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Latest blog from our CEO: Time to raise awareness of Self-directed Support

Reform of our health and social care services cannot only be an ambition but is an urgent requirement. The recent annual report from the Auditor General on NHS Scotland made this extremely clear. If we are to meet the current and future health and care needs of our country, we have to change how we deliver care and treatment, with more services based in our communities, meeting individual care needs. Audit Scotland’s annual report said the NHS was “seriously struggling to become financially sustainable” and the Auditor General Caroline Gardner said the integration of health and social care was too slow and staff were under intense pressure. The conclusion was that Scotland could face a £1.8bn shortfall in less than five years if it is not reformed. Change is urgently needed but the pace of change is too slow. We have achieved a consensus on the need to integrate health and social care services and reform social care. Health and Social Care Partnerships have been established to bring about more effective collaboration, but progress is patchy. Yet by embracing rather than resisting reform of health and social care, we have the opportunity for transformational change which will benefit the thousands of people in our country who are supported by care services. For me social care has always been profoundly about human rights. It is about giving the citizen control and choice, voice and agency, decision and empowerment. These principles underpin the Scottish Government’s flagship social policy of Self-directed Support, which seeks to give people more control over the care services they receive.  The policy means local authorities now have a legal duty to offer people eligible for social care four options on how to use their personal budget. The four options are direct payments; an Individual Service Fund held by the local authority and allocated to a provider of your choice; the local authority arranging support on your behalf; or a mix of these options. Human rights and social care practice come together in our Self-directed Support legislation in Scotland which unapologetically grew out of the independent living movement of the learning and physical disabled communities in the 1970s. With the closure of large-scale institutions there was an emphasis on enabling individuals to live more independent lives. Policies and practice at the time and since emphasised the importance of building social care supports around the life of the individual rather than expecting the individual to fit into what services were available. A one size fits all approach was replaced by the urge to develop and offer bespoke individual services and supports. A personalised approach has the potential to benefit and empower people with a range of conditions and care needs. This is why we have been keen to assess levels of awareness of Self-directed support among those groups of people who could potentially benefit most. We have been working with Royal Blind to research awareness of Self-directed Support among people with visual impairment. People living with sight loss require care which meets their specific needs to enable them to flourish and foster their full contribution. Self-directed Support offers them the potential to ensure they are provided with specialist support, equipment and accessible information to help them live well with visual impairment. There are around 188,000 people in Scotland living with significant sight loss, around three quarters of whom are over 65, and this number is projected to increase to over 200,000 by 2030. This means Scotland requires a social care system which can support an increasing number of people with sight loss. Self-directed Support has the potential to benefit thousands of people with sight loss, enabling many to maintain their independence and live at home for longer. So it is disappointing to learn that there is low awareness of Self-directed Support among many people with sight loss. Over 100 people with sight loss were surveyed by Royal Blind and Scottish War Blinded to learn their views and experiences of Self-directed Support. When asked the question “have you heard of Self-directed Support,” two thirds of respondents said they had not. Only five respondents said they had a support plan funded through Self-directed Support.  Over 60 percent of respondents had never been informed of the budget available to them for their care and support. If I am living with a lifelong condition or need support in any way because of life circumstances or age then I most certainly do want to have more choice and control both over who is in my life as a carer and what the nature of that support and care might be. The critical importance of legislation like Self-directed Support is all about embedding that control and choice, building those rights with the citizen including fiscal and budgetary control. This is why it so frustrating that for too many people, including people with sight loss, the promise of Self-directed Support is not being realised. The legislation is now in its fifth year – bedding down should have long since passed. The excuses are running out and we are left with the conclusion that this human rights-based policy is being consciously ignored, blocked and underfunded, or that only those who shout the loudest are being given choice and control. We are still defaulting to models and a provision of assessment and care which too often do not meet individual need and are economically unsustainable.  This situation needs to change urgently if we are to secure sustainable models of care and the rights of people accessing care services to be fully included in our communities. There is little point in having fantastic legislation if there are is a collective failure to put it into practice. There is little point in having rights under the law if the obstacles to exercising those rights are growing every day. Dr Donald Macaskill  CEO @DrDMacaskill

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Exploring and Developing Palliative and End of Life Care

The Scottish Government vision is that by 2021 everyone in Scotland will have access to high quality palliative and end of life care no matter where they are cared for – at home, in the community, in residential care, in hospital or in a hospice. For this to happen there is a need for staff in all areas to become more confident in delivering end of life care that helps people to live well and die well and to meet individualised needs and wishes.

The University of the Highlands and Islands has developed a new continuing professional development award for health and social care workers that is designed to provide candidates with the  knowledge and skills base set out in the NHS Education for Scotland Palliative and End of Life Framework for staff who regularly provide care and support to people with palliative and end of life care needs, their families and carers. This is a SCQF Level 7 award (HNC/ first year undergraduate level) and has a nominal 200 hours of learning over 15 weeks, which equates to 20 credits. The award will be delivered online using the university virtual learning environment. Online learning may seem a little daunting, but candidates will be fully supported by an online tutor who will guide students through the content and assessments. Studying online allows students to study at a time and place that fits in with their work and family commitments.

The first presentation of the course will start in January 2020. We are pleased to advise that there will be a limited number of free places funded by the Scottish Funding Council for this first cohort of students.

If you are interested in undertaking this award, then please discuss this with your line manager. If you wish to know more about the award or need further details, please contact Jacqui Allison at Perth College UHI – [email protected].

Palliative Care A5 leaflet (003)
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To Absent Friends festival

What is it?

To Absent Friends is a people’s festival of storytelling and remembrance. It aims to reignite traditions of remembering the dead as a way to support those who are experiencing grief and bereavement and to encourage greater openness about death and dying.

Why is it happening?

Everyone has a story to tell of someone who is dead who they miss – a grandparent who had a fascinating life; a friend with a unique sense of humour; a child who loved to dance.

A person’s death does not lessen the meaning of the relationship we have with them.

But our culture doesn’t really support active remembrance of dead people. Talking openly about someone who is dead can often cause discomfort or embarrassment.

In a culture where death is seen as being too morbid, too difficult or too disturbing to mention, how do we remember and pay our respects to the dead?

When is it?

It takes place from 1-7 November 2019

Where is it?

Public events are taking place across Scotland, but people can also get involved via the To Absent Friends website and on social media.

Who is organising it?

The festival forms part of a year round initiative called Good Life Good Death Good Grief, led by the Scottish Partnership for Palliative Care.

What is happening?

Public events have been planned by various organisations and community groups across Scotland, beginning with a launch with an illuminated lilies garden at Dundee University on Thursday 31 October. Other events include cafes of reminiscence, poetry nights, concerts and craft workshops. For a full list see the event listings on the website.

How can I get involved?

If you’re doing anything for To Absent Friends, please share it on social media with the hashtag #ToAbsentFriends and copy us in. We’re also asking people to join in online in the following ways:

Profile Pictures – During the week, we’re asking people to change their profile pictures to someone who has died, and to update their status/tweet to say why.

Remembrance Playlist – Remember someone through a song. On the To Absent Friends website, we are collating a list of musical tributes to absent friends. Visit the website and send in your suggestions of a song.

https://www.toabsentfriends.org.uk/content/songs/

Wall of Remembrance – For those who want to leave an anonymous tribute to someone they have lost, there is a place on the website for them to do so. https://www.toabsentfriends.org.uk/content/remembrance/ 

Online Storytelling – We have an online space for people to share longer stories about those they love who have died.

https://www.toabsentfriends.org.uk/content/storytelling/

Please encourage people to participate in these activities via social media using the links above. We have prepared graphics you can share alongside them which can be accessed via Dropbox:

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/mu6x9ioxs2rag6x/AADmj65dkZJ0S7Ps8D6j4Rmya?dl=0

How do I get in touch?

Website: www.toabsentfriends.org.uk

Twitter: @2absentfriends

Hashtag: #ToAbsentFriends

E-mail: [email protected]

The team at To Absent Friends would love to hear from you if you are holding an event or have an act of remembrance which you wish to share.

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News Release: Trust Housing and Scottish Care launch new Care Cameo Report

“Keeping body and soul together’ reports on the challenges faced by Scotland’s ethnic minority older people

Trust Housing and Scottish Care, today (31st October, 2019) launch the 9th Care Cameo in the Care Cameo series, a programme of papers by care professionals, designed to foster debate on some of the most important issues associated with the delivery of care and support for older people across Scotland. It was launched at the Scottish Parliament event, sponsored by Bill Kidd MSP.

Today’s Care Cameo, entitled “Keeping body and soul together”, reviews the physical, emotional, cultural and spiritual care needs of ethnic minority older people in Scotland and has been researched and written by Rohini Sharma Joshi FICH, Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Manager for Trust Housing.

Rohini has extensive experience of working and engaging with hundreds of ethnic minority older people to listen to their concerns about care and housing and to define what they needed to restore their dignity, self-esteem and independence. “Keeping body and soul together” draws together some of the key concerns that were reported directly by older people.

Rohini Sharma Joshi said:

“We are failing our ethnic minority older people in Scotland. Older people who have worked hard all their lives in this country are now finding themselves isolated, lonely and discouraged. They are often unable to access services, they are estranged from the wider community because of language barriers and can no longer depend on traditional family support networks. Many of these older people do not live in appropriate accommodation, yet there is no sheltered housing and care home accommodation available to meet their needs. Today’s Care Cameo gives Scotland’s ethnic minority older people a voice. It is imperative that we listen to them and take action.”

Dr Donald Macaskill, CEO Scottish Care, said:

“As an organisation our vision is to shape the environment in which care services can operate and thrive. One of the ways we can do this is by working co-operatively with care providers and most importantly, with the people who use the services. The ethnic minority older people who have contributed to today’s Care Cameo have articulated the challenges they face and the care and services they are unable to access with heartbreaking candour. We are very grateful for their contribution to both this care cameo and to the wider debate in Scotland.

If Scotland is serious about including all citizens regardless of race or ethnicity then we must adequately resource the already stretched care sector to develop services, train staff and work with people to create services which meet the needs of all our citizens. At the moment Scotland is failing to be racially inclusive.”

CARE CAMEO FINAL WEBSITE
Download Care Cameo
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Consultation on practical fire safety guidance for care and housing support providers

The Scottish Government is currently gathering views on draft Fire Safety Guidance for Specialised Housing (and other supported domestic accommodation) and will use the responses to further develop and refine the guidance.  The consultation is open until 22 October 2019.

Scottish Care will be submitting a response on behalf of members and want to ensure this is grounded in the views and experiences of providers.  If you have comments you would like included in the response, please contact Swaran Rakhra by email or phone by Friday 18 October.  We also encourage members to submit their own responses where appropriate.

What is this consultation about?

This Fire Safety Guidance has been drafted to deliver on the sixth recommendation from the Review of the Fire Safety Regime for High Rise Domestic Buildings in Scotland. The Review’s other recommendations relate to fire safety in high rise domestic buildings and were agreed by the Scottish Government Ministerial Working Group on Building and Fire Safety that was set up following the tragic fire at Grenfell Tower. The sixth recommendation “Introduction of Scottish guidance concerning fire safety in specialised housing” is not specific to high rise domestic buildings but also agreed by the Ministerial Working Group.

Why Specialised Housing and supported domestic accommodation?

The Scottish fire regime review found there are no major gaps in the Scottish legislation but it did identify a lack of guidance related to the consideration of the needs of vulnerable people. It advocated a “person-centred” approach to meet the needs of all individuals that may need additional help in terms of fire safety.

What is Specialised Housing and what else does the guidance apply to?

Most specialised housing is provided for older people, who, with advancing age, may require a degree of care and support. This includes sheltered and very sheltered or extra-care housing. Other forms of specialised housing have evolved for people with specific needs, including housing for adults with physical, sensory, mental health or cognitive impairments who live, to varying degrees, independently within the community in group home environments. In some cases, such residents may require significant care and support (known collectively as “supported housing”).
It is also recognised that some people will be receiving home care services in what might be referred to as “general needs” housing. Therefore, the guidance has been drafted with a “person-centred” approach and aims to meet the needs of all individuals that may need additional help in terms of fire safety in the home. The guidance is also applicable to very small, domestic care homes, akin to supported housing.

Who is this consultation for?

The Guidance is primarily to be used by people that provide the housing or care/support services, and those regulators who ensure resident and tenant safety is adequately addressed. However, everyone who lives in specialised housing (or other supported domestic accommodation) and those with fire safety responsibilities are encouraged to respond to the consultation. This includes:
• Residents / tenants
• Independent/private sector housing providers
• Housing associations
• Local authority housing providers
• Managing agents or facilities managers
• Care and support providers
• Local authority service commissioners
• Enforcement Officers in local housing authorities
• Enforcement Officers and Community Safety staff of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service
• Advice agencies
• Consultants/contractors carrying out fire safety risk assessments
• Other people with responsibility for Fire Safety
• Anyone else with views including relatives of people who live in specialised housing

The consultation documents and questions can be accessed here: https://consult.gov.scot/fire-and-rescue/fire-safety-guidance-specialised-housing/ 

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News Release: Call for an Older Persons Human Rights Convention

Call for an Older Persons Human Rights Convention

On the UN International Day of Older Persons, 1 October, The Five Nations Care Forum, comprising eight national social care organisations, added their voice to the urgent call for a United Nations Convention on the Rights of Older Persons.

Globally, between 2017 and 2030, the number of persons aged 60 years or over is projected to grow by 46 per cent (from 962 million to 1.4 billion).

This day is an opportunity to highlight the important contributions that older people make to society and to raise awareness of the opportunities and challenges of ageing in today’s world.

Older people have always played a significant role in society, yet they are at risk of ageism, discrimination, poverty and disability, because their rights are not respected.

Old age is something which should be valued, but societal attitudes fail to recognise the benefits and potential of older persons. Old age is seen as a challenge rather than an opportunity.

Across the UK and Republic of Ireland we join the call, led by HelpAge International, for a new convention on the rights of older people. We believe that this is a crucial way to make sure that all people enjoy their human rights in older age, and on an equal basis with others.
Ends.

Notes for editors

1. The Five Nations Care Forum enables representative care organisations for England, Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, Scotland and Wales to explore shared agendas in relation to models of care, registration, regulation and social care policy. For more information see: http://www.fivenationscareforum.com/

2. For further details on the importance of the Convention see: https://www.helpage.org/what-we-do/rights/towards-a-convention-on-the-rights-of-older-people/

3. Enquiries to [email protected] / 07584 659995

 

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Scottish Care Webinar – 4 October 2019

Scottish Care is delighted to announce the guest speaker for our next webinar, Calum Smith - Registration Team Leader, Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC). This webinar is due to take place on Friday 4 October 2019 at 10:30am.

In this session, Calum will be giving a presentation on registering with SSSC. This presentation will include: when to register and what this means for you, the value of registration, and your responsibilities as a registrant. He will then give a live demonstration of MySSSC, which is a platform for a range of online services for people applying for registration, people who are already registered, employers and universities. With MySSSC you can: apply for registration; have your application endorsed by your employer; view the information SSSC holds in relation to your registration; view your current registration status including any conditions on your registration; update changes; record your post registration training and learning; renew your registration online; pay your fees online. Calum will also be available to answer any questions at the end of the webinar.

We hope you can attend the webinar as it will be an informative session that will be beneficial to those working in the social care sector.

Those who wish to attend the webinar must be members of Scottish Care.

You can read the Terms of Participation here. 

Webinar link: https://zoom.us/j/784074083

Webinar ID: 784-074-083

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Guidance Document on Human Rights Charter for Technology and Digital in Social Care

Scottish Care and partners have been developing a 'Human Rights Charter for Technology and Digital in Social Care' over the past year, involving work from developers and designers, providers and practitioners, residents and citizens we use social care support. This charter details 17 principles that should be followed when using technology in the care of people in Scotland. A guidance document has also been produced which briefly discusses each principle individually and suggests how they can be used to support the human rights of individuals and communities in the use of technology and digital in social care.

We encourage you to take a look through the Guidance Document and Charter below.

It is our hope that any readers, whether from organisations, members and individuals will want to sign up to the Charter. We are currently creating a distinct page for this, but in the meantime please email [email protected] stating your name and we will get back to you soon.

Tech guidance
Tech charter