A new survey from Age UK shows that 70% of families haven’t been able to visit relatives in care homes at all during the coronavirus crisis. Many families will be desperate their loved ones after so long. Now the Government have finally said that visits can take place, they must […]
National
Liz supports ‘Caring in Covid’ Advent Calendar
I was invited to read a story for National Care Forum‘s Christmas Advent Calendar – a virtual celebration sharing inspirational stories of those Caring in Covid. Anchor Hanover St Mary’s worked with residents and their families to collect letters, nostalgic photos, uniforms, and rousing posters from World War II, to […]
Liz meets with Care Provider Alliance
Last week I met with the Care Provider Alliance (CPA) to discuss issues facing the social care sector. The CPA represents the adult social care sector including care homes, home care and supported living. The main thing we discussed was the Chancellor’s latest spending review. The Government announced £1bn […]
At least 15,000 Britons wrongly denied critical care costs worth £300 million
More than 175,000 patients were referred last year for Continuing Healthcare funding (CHC), typically worth around £1,000 a week. New findings show that there were failings in more than a third of cases investigated by the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman, meaning incorrect and delayed decisions were being made by […]
New care crisis looms as rules shut out EU staff
Many care homes are reliant on staff from the European Union, and once we leave the EU it will be hard to cover these gaps. Labour has been warning for months now about the risks posed to social care by the Government’s new immigration system, which come on top of […]
Liz joins Mobilise’s ‘Virtual Cuppa’
Last week I joined one of Mobilise’s ‘Virtual Cuppas’ with carers from across the country. Their ‘Virtual Cuppas’ have been running every day since March, and give carers a chance to meet each other and share their experiences. Mobilise are using technology to identify and support people caring for family […]
Liz responds to the Spending Review on Peston
Following the Chancellor’s Spending Review, I appeared on Peston to discuss the main announcements. The Government is hitting those on the lowest incomes, with a public sector pay freeze and £20/week cuts to Universal Credit. The Chancellor needs to reprioritise, and focus on building jobs and growth in every part […]
Liz meets with carers and care providers in the North West
On Carers Rights Day, I spoke at North West roundtable with carers and care providers, organised by Cllr Joanne Harding. We heard some heartbreaking stories from people who have not been able to see their families, and the key role that unpaid carers play in looking after elderly, ill or […]
Liz calls for spare testing capacity to be used for family visits to care homes
I asked the Care Minister to start utilising the 157,000 spare tests currently unused to test families visiting care homes. For many families, it has been eight months since they last saw their loved ones in person. A pilot scheme simply fails to understand the scale or urgency of the […]
Most of the 87,000 people who died in care homes during the coronavirus pandemic were denied family comfort in their final days
New figures from the Labour Party show that there are around 157,000 coronavirus tests a day going unused. This excess testing capacity in the system shows that family testing can be done now, not after a pilot. For families of care home residents every week is crucial and we cannot […]
Delays to Covid-only care home plan could strand patients, warn England health chiefs
As it stands, only 67 out of 151 local authorities have been able to designate a Covid-only care home in their area. This isn’t just bad for care homes, but also for the NHS, which desperately needs all capacity to treat Covid patients and bring down the huge backlog in cancer […]
Liz calls for more support for people with dementia during the Covid-19 pandemic
During a debate in Parliament last week, I called on the Government to learn lessons from the pandemic’s impact on people with dementia. The majority of dementia patients are cared for in the community and in their own homes – and yet these care settings have not received the attention […]