25th March 2015
Working together to make independent living a reality
We are now less than a month away from the Care Act coming into force which for the first time creates a single modern law for the social care system.
This will come with challenges and opportunities for local government and the voluntary sector.
Throughout the Care Bill’s passage through Parliament, Scope campaigned for the social care system to be sustainably funded.
Scope understands the financial pressure local government is under and that’s why we have worked and will continue to work, closely with SOLACE, LGA, and ADASS to call on the Government to adequately fund social care.
We also want to work with local councils to seize the opportunities we have to make independent living a reality for disabled people.
Scope works to raise expectations when it comes to disability and we want everything we do to reflect our ambitions.
That’s why we are closing and changing many of our existing services. Many of these care homes were set up in the 1960s and 1970s. Now, 50 years later, disabled people’s aspirations have changed.
More disabled people are choosing to live independently in the community with support from staff they choose. We want to focus our work on giving people more opportunities to have a say over their lives, enabling them to be a bigger part of the community.
These new and innovative services must have independence at their heart and push boundaries and aspirations.
New services, like those we have opened in the London Borough of Barnet and Hertfordshire County Council, do exactly that.
These services can only become a reality when organisations like Scope and local government work together on this common goal.
We greatly value our existing partnerships with local government and want to be with local councils every step of the way as the social care system is transformed. Only by working together can we make independent living a reality for disabled people.
Scope has recently released a new short film about independent living:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fol7Wo7ZIew
Richard Hawkes, Chief Executive, Scope