Scottish Care calls for Covid-19 Inquiry lessons to strengthen future pandemic planning and social care resilience
Scottish Care has called for the lessons of the UK Covid-19 Inquiry’s Module 6 report to shape future pandemic planning and strengthen social care resilience across Scotland.
The report is a solemn reflection on an unprecedented period. We remember every person who died, those who experienced separation and isolation, the unpaid carers who carried additional responsibility, and the care staff and providers who worked with commitment and compassion in exceptionally difficult and fast-changing circumstances.
Donald Macaskill, Chief Executive of Scottish Care, said:
“Today’s report is a sobering and, at times, deeply painful read. Behind every recommendation and every finding are thousands of lives changed forever: people who died, families who continue to grieve, and care staff who carried extraordinary burdens in circumstances none of us should ever see repeated.
The Inquiry’s conclusions confirm many of the concerns raised by Scottish Care, our members, people who access care and support, families and the wider sector throughout the pandemic. Social care entered Covid-19 already under severe pressure, weakened by workforce shortages, recruitment and retention challenges, and longstanding structural fragility. Known risks had been identified before the pandemic, yet they were not adequately addressed, and care services were not sufficiently embedded within emergency planning and response arrangements.
The report is particularly significant in acknowledging that social care was too often treated as an afterthought rather than as an equal partner within our system of public protection. Providers struggled to access PPE, worked without sufficiently clear and tailored guidance in the earliest stages, and were required to make impossible decisions while doing everything they could to protect those in their care. The Inquiry records that Scottish Care issued its own guidance before official sector guidance became available. That reflects both the urgency of the situation and the extent to which providers felt they could not wait for national systems to catch up.
The Inquiry also acknowledges the enormous challenges around staffing, funding and operational support, while recognising the remarkable efforts of providers and staff to protect and care for people in extraordinarily difficult circumstances. It is essential that responsibility for systemic failure is not displaced onto the very organisations and individuals who were left trying to hold services together.
Accountability matters, but this report cannot be only about past failure. It must become a mandate for lasting change. The clearest lesson is that social care can never again be regarded as peripheral or secondary, especially during a national emergency. Social care is critical national infrastructure. It sustains the lives, rights, wellbeing and dignity of hundreds of thousands of people and is an indispensable part of Scotland’s social fabric.
We welcome the Inquiry’s emphasis on stronger preparedness, workforce support, better data, robust planning, adequate resources and the meaningful inclusion of social care in decision-making. These are not abstract or technical recommendations. They are measures that protect rights, uphold dignity and save lives. The challenge now is implementation, not further delay or another cycle of review.
Above all, we remember every person who lost their life, all those who were bereaved, and everyone whose health, relationships and wellbeing were profoundly affected. We also remember the thousands of social care staff who continued to provide support with courage, compassion and professionalism under relentless pressure. Many went to work frightened and exhausted, often feeling forgotten. They deserve more than our thanks. They deserve a firm commitment that the lessons identified by this Inquiry will be acted upon fully and without delay.”
Scottish Care is calling on the Scottish Government and its partners to take the following action:
- set out how Scotland-relevant recommendations will be considered and taken forward;
- co-produce and regularly test national and local pandemic plans with the sector;
- develop shared, timely information on care capacity and workforce pressures;
- agree timely and accessible support arrangements for infection control, sick pay and service continuity; and
- invest in sustainable commissioning and the social care workforce.
Scottish Care will continue to work with government, regulators, providers, the workforce, people who access care and support, and families to secure that change. Future pandemic planning must recognise social care from the outset, protect the human rights of those who rely on support, ensure the sector is properly resourced, and give social care an equal voice at every table where decisions are made. Never again should the voices of people receiving and delivering care be heard too late.
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