We need to come together over social care in rural Highlands
Holyrood Notebook by Maree Todd
As a minority government, the process of passing legislation requires us to work closely with the opposition to find common ground.
While this can be a positive force – encouraging compromise and collaboration to shape better policy – it isn’t always easy. The National Care Service (NCS), for which I have ministerial responsibility, perfectly illustrates this challenge.
Social care is in urgent and desperate need of reform. Despite the best efforts of many, the system is just not able to deliver the care and support that people need to live and thrive.
Recruitment challenges, rising demand and financial pressures have all put the sector under enormous strain.
In Highland, the closure of rural care homes has forced families and friends to travel long distances to visit loved ones, while others remain in hospital longer than necessary due to a shortage of care home beds.
The stark differences in care between urban and rural areas, the difficulties my constituents face in accessing social care, and the experiences of those working in the sector have all motivated me to push for change.
Services must be shaped by the needs of the people they support. That’s why we engaged with communities across the country – including those in the Highlands and Islands – listening to those with lived experience of social care, social work, and community health as well as the dedicated professionals working in the sector.
Through this consultation, we heard strong support for a National Care Service – one that is accountable to Scottish ministers, with services designed and delivered locally to reflect the needs of each community.
We all have a vested interest in social care. A strong social care system enables people to live independently, supports families to remain in work, and eases pressure on the NHS by preventing unnecessary hospital admissions and reducing delayed discharges. It is both a social and economic investment.
I acknowledge that there has been opposition to certain aspects of our original NCS proposals. I have carefully considered this feedback, alongside insights from those with first-hand experience of the current system and input from independent experts. Taking all of this into account, we have decided to change our approach and move the NCS in a new direction.
Key elements of the original bill will still be carried forward. We will implement Anne’s Law, which will grant adult care home residents the legal right to see their loved ones. We will introduce a right to breaks, acknowledging the vital role of unpaid carers in our communities.
We will enhance information-sharing across healthcare settings and improve individuals’ ability to access and manage information about their care, while continuing to develop plans for a national social work partnership.
We know that the social care system in Scotland needs to change and that partners across the public sector, including local government and the national health service, agree. The status quo is not an option. Change is needed, and we must all work to secure improvement in the sector.
We recently heard Labour’s social care minister, Stephen Kinnock, acknowledge that previous UK government attempts to reform adult social care had failed due to party-political point scoring and short-term thinking, stating: “The weaponisation of care for narrow party-political ends has to stop.”
Moving forward, I hope all parties will engage constructively to bring about meaningful and sustainable change that meets the needs of our constituents.
• Maree Todd is the SNP MSP for Caithness, Sutherland and Ross.
