I was honoured to join Care Talk Live and the Social Care Institute for Excellence‘s Conference, “From New Normal to New Future”. Care Talk is a magazine exclusively for those working in social care, and aims to promote and celebrate positive stories in care. The Social Care Institute for Excellence […]
New research shows that care homes rated ‘inadequate’ have more state-funded residents than care homes rated ‘outstanding’ by the CQC. These figures reveal an unacceptable two-tier care system, with better off people getting a better quality of social care. No matter where people live or how they pay, everyone should […]
Trade unions expect there to be over 170,000 vacancies in social care by the end of the year. We are already facing a winter crisis in social care – this will make it worse. Instead of hanging care providers out to dry, the Government must put in place a real, […]
As part of Labour’s Annual Conference, I sat on the Future Social Care Coalition’s panel ‘Why is workforce reform critical to getting social care done?’. I believe that workforce reform is crucial to fixing social care. This is why Labour are backing a new deal for care workers, which gives […]
At Labour Party Annual Conference, I spoke at the Health Foundation’s fringe meeting ‘Where next for social care?’. It was great to see such a large turnout to hear about where the Government need to go next on social care reform, and how a Labour government would approach social care. […]
Transforming social care is the challenge of our generation. This was true even before Covid struck, but the pandemic has exposed, more than ever, the urgent need for reform. A future Labour government will modernise the welfare state from cradle to grave, investing in social care as part of our […]
I was so proud to stand alongside the amazing Rights for Residents today at 10 Downing Street, as they handed in their petition to allow care home residents the legal right to see their loved ones. Over 250,000 people have signed the petition to date – we […]
Since Parliament came back after the summer, the biggest issue has been the Government’s ‘NHS and social care levy’ (a 1.25% increase in National Insurance Contributions) which they claim will fix the crisis in social care. The two key tests for the Tories about this proposal are: will it work, […]
Today I spoke at an event organised by the National Care Association. Care providers told me that they are desperately struggling to find staff and are deeply worried about what this will mean for people who need care. Urgent action is needed to tackle the workforce crisis in social care. […]
Even before the pandemic there were over 100,000 vacancies in social care, and Covid-19 has made the situation even worse. Unless ministers grip this problem, thousands of elderly and disabled people will be forced to go without the basic help they need to do things like get up, washed, dressed […]
I appeared on BBC’s Newscast last week to discuss the last few months in politics. As Shadow Social Care Minister, I spoke about Boris Johnson’s promise to fix the crisis in social care – a promise he made over two years ago. Despite the Prime Minister saying he had a […]
Today I spoke in a Westminster Hall Debate on behalf of the Labour Party on unpaid carers. I argued that in the century of ageing, we cannot build a better future for our country without transforming social care, and unpaid family carers must be at the heart of these […]
