City's adult social care services rated 'good'

A regulator has praised a city council for its commitment to "promoting people's independence" as part of its adult social care service.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) rated the Stoke-on-Trent City Council's adult social care service as "good" following a recent inspection.

A report released on Friday highlighted staff's "passion" and leadership, but criticised the authority for delays in people accessing equipment or home adaptations.

A city council spokesperson said they were proud of the staff and pledged to continue improving its services.

James Bullion, CQC's chief inspector of adult social care, said the authority had improved services through "effective management and close work with partner organisations".

He said staff demonstrated a passion for improving people's lives while leaders were focused on "making the authority a great place to live and work for all residents".

"We saw a local authority committed to promoting people's independence to give them the best possible outcome," Mr Bullion added.

However, he said the authority needed better oversight of equality diversity and inclusion work and highlighted delays in some parts of the service and resource constraints.

People experienced some delays in receiving assessments, he added, as well as reviews for social care, occupational therapy and financial support.

Mr Bullion concluded by saying the report had positive findings that "reflect the hard work of staff" and the authority had plans in place to improve the issues identified.

Responding to the report, city council leader Jane Ashworth said the workforce did a "fantastic job" in demonstrating the pride the authority had in the city.

"Adult social care is, and always will be, a key priority of this authority and we are continuing to strive to deliver the best services we can – listening to residents and shaping services accordingly," she added.

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