Issued: 10 May 2002
Angus unveils new plans for home care
An extensive programme for the development of social work home care services has been unveiled by Angus Council.
The new services are a massive investment in community care services and the council has already carried out a recruitment campaign to bring on board 100 new social care officers.
Social Work Convener Glennis Middleton said the council was committed to providing the best possible care for people who need help to continue to live at home.
“The new services will be able to care for more people in their own homes for much longer. Under the new system we will be able to offer additional help with domestic tasks and will also see the development of a more extensive meals on wheels service, where we will be able to provide a service at lunchtime and teatime, seven days a week across Angus.
“We have a dedicated group of staff who are working hard to improve services for the future and I look forward to the implementation of these new services as part of our local partnership with Angus Local Health Care Co-operative.”
The development in services takes forward the Modernising Community Care agenda and in Angus this will see the development of different teams of home care staff.
Under the new system help with household tasks will be given by Domestic Assistants with a separate team of Social Care Officers providing help with personal care. These posts will replace home helps, with existing home helps opting to either become home care domestic assistants or home care social care officers.
Staff will be grouped into small teams ensuring that the number of staff involved in a service users personal care over the week will be limited. At the moment a much wider group of home helps may be involved with each service user.
Alongside the developments there is to be a continued investment in staff training. This will ensure that home care staff are properly trained and supported to deliver the level of care that service users need.
The new service will come on stream in two phases, from 13 May in Forfar, Montrose and Carnoustie and from 3 June onwards in the rest of Angus. Home care staff are working to minimise any changes in the delivery of services for individual service users.
The developments also fit with the national policy in relation to personal care. From 1 July 2002 personal care for people over 65 years of age will be free of charge. Help with household tasks will, however, remain chargeable.
The development of the new teams has already seen a recruitment drive for an additional 100 social care officers. Further new jobs will become available as the new extended meals on wheels service develops.