The National Children and Adult Services (NCAS) conference was held in Harrogate from 21-23 October.
The theme for this year’s event was ‘Rising to the challenge: brighter futures for all’. Over the three days, some 1,200 attendees came together to discuss and debate the latest issues affecting children and adult services.
Participants included directors of adult social care, local authority chief executives, councillors, policymakers and service managers with responsibilities for children’s and adult social care in the statutory, voluntary and private sector.
Secretary of State for Health Andy Burnham gave the keynote speech, and Minister of State for Care Services Phil Hope and the DH’s Director General of Social Care David Behan led a plenary session on the Social Care Green Paper.
The wide range of other plenary, policy and fringe sessions covered topics, including safeguarding children, transforming adult dementia services, the Social Work Task Force and the impact of the recession on children and adult services.
An exhibition of over 100 organisations from the public, private and third sectors showcased new ways of working.
Key launches at the conference
Use of resources in adult social care: a guide for local authorities
The aim of this guide – written by John Bolton, Social Care Strategic Finance within the DH – is to spark discussion and debate in local authorities on how to commission and shape services for the future by making best use of resources. It encourages local authorities to learn from each other about how to take this innovation forward and spread best practice around the country.
Social Care TV
This is a new broadband service from the Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE). It highlights good practice from the SCIE and other organisations, with feature films that link through to related guidance and advice, multimedia and e-learning resources. The aim is to stimulate debate between social care staff, managers, commissioners and trainers about the big issues in the sector.
Valuing People Now guidance
Good Learning Disability Partnership Boards: Making it happen for everyone was produced by the DH to help learning disability partnership boards deliver on the goals set out in the Valuing People Now strategy. The guide provides best practice examples from around the country and proposed ways of working, based on evidence that the most effective partnership boards are those:
- with strong links to other local Boards and work programmes
- where there is delegated or shared financial and commissioning responsibility
- where there is meaningful representation of people with learning disabilities and family carers from all local communities.
- Download the guidance
Links and info