Social care White Paper consultation: care ‘must be citizen-focused and co-produced’

WCVA has responded to Welsh Government’s consultation on its White Paper for rebalancing social care in Wales.

The White Paper set out a number of proposals around improving the social care arrangements and strengthening partnership working to better support people’s wellbeing across the country. Following its publication, WCVA organised a pair of events for the sector to have its say on the White Paper and its accompanying consultation questions. This feedback was incorporated into our full response, which you can read here.

In it, we make a number of points, including:

• The consultation questions were felt to be insufficiently citizen-focused, glossing over issues found at grassroots level and within communities.
• The White Paper barely acknowledges co-production. There must be a formal commitment to coproduction that extends beyond the Social Services and Wellbeing Act.
• More clarity is needed as to how social value will be measured.
• Circumstances must be created where local organisations are given a level playing field to provide bespoke tailored services through social value commissioning processes.
• Care and support plans should form the basis of a national framework – not vice versa.
• Volunteers are central to the success of social prescribing.
• The current focus of commissioning still appears to be on cost and obtaining the cheapest service available, leading to some given treatment less adequate than is required. Commissioning must reflect the involvement of service users and carers.
• There are issues around how Regional Partnership Boards collaborate with others and co-design their services.
• RPBS structures and ways of working should be reviewed before giving them additional powers.
• Strategic planning and resourcing of volunteering as an integral component of health and social care should be encouraged and enabled at RPB level.
• Welsh Government must set out a clear evidence base as to how their proposals will deliver against the principles of the Social Services and Wellbeing Act.

You can read our full response here.

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