Lifting the veil: Removing the invisibility of adult social care
03/05/2022
The House of Lords Adult Social Care Committee was established in 2022 to consider how to improve the planning for, and delivery of, adult social care services in England.
They want to build on the lived experience of people who draw on care and support and their carers and are calling for written evidence of people from different backgrounds to share their experiences and feedback to help support the enquiry and subsequent report.
Adult social care provides services for people from young to old; from those with inherited disabilities from birth to those who become ill, frail and dependent as they move into later life. Across these many different conditions and personal circumstances, people with care needs rely for much of their support, care and independence on unpaid carers; and in many ways, both the people who draw on care and support and their carers are largely invisible.
Adult social care, as a whole, is often described as ‘invisible’. While people often talk and know about the health service, for example, very few people understand what adult social care is, how it works and why it matters.
This means that it can be difficult to bring about positive change on the ground, compared to other, more popular and better-understood services such as health or education.
This invisibility extends to the millions of unpaid carers across England, whether family members or friends, who support their loved ones to live their lives, often providing more care and support than formal services. People who draw on care and support and carers are incredibly diverse and some people can be very isolated. Many family carers do not define themselves as ‘carers’ and, therefore, do not necessarily benefit from some of the support that is available.
The committee's questions are intended to provide a framework for those who wish to offer their views. You do not need to answer all the questions, just those that are relevant. The Committee welcomes reference to other questions that are relevant and that you wish to draw its attention to.
Above all, the Committee wants to build on the lived experience of people who draw on care and support and their carers and recognises that this is a powerful and important form of evidence in its own right.
The Committee invites written contributions by 27 May 2022. It will be holding oral evidence sessions from March 2022 and expects to publish its final report in November 2022.
The Committee is keen that the voices of people who draw on care and support and carers are central to its work and wants to hear from people who do not usually feel able to take part in these kinds of discussions, as well as from people who contribute regularly. If there is anything that would help you to contribute, please contact the Committee (hladultcare@parliament.uk) to discuss how your participation could be supported.
Further information and access to the questions can be found here
