Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Bill –WLGA Perspective

1. Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Bill –WLGA Perspective Andrew Bell, SSIA Knowledge Manager

2. May 2011 Feb 2011 Nov 2010 How did we get here? May 2014 March 2012 Feb 2015 Jan 2014

3. The Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Bill

4. The Bill was laid before the National Assembly for Wales on 23 February 2015 • Stage 1 scrutiny • 46 recommendations have been made • If passed the Bill will be implemented in 2017 Where are we now? Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Bill

5. The Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act comes into force from April 16 • Changes to the UK legislative picture • Need to learn from high profile cases in Wales and the UK Why change things? Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Bill

6. The key aims of the Bill are to secure well-being for citizens and to improve the quality of care and support in Wales To achieve these aims nine objectives have been set out Key aims of the Bill Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Bill

7. Place citizen at the heart of the system • A system that understands impact of services on people’s lives • Providers of services are appropriately accountable • Improve information sharing and co-operation • Better understand the future to avoid unexpected failures • Make a step change in the improvement agenda • Support the development of best workforce possible • Deliver robust and transparent system of regulation • Reduce complexity of the law and provide future flexibility 9 objectives of the Bill Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Bill

8. The Bill sets out five significant areas of provision: • Service Regulation • Local Authority Social Services • Market Oversight • Workforce Registration • Social Care Wales What does the Bill cover? Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Bill

9. Under the Bill a ‘regulated service’ is defined as: • A care home service • A secure accommodation service • A residential family centre service • An adoption service • An adult placement service • A domiciliary support service • Any other service comprising the provision of care and support in Wales as may be prescribed Provision of the Bill - Service Regulation Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Bill

10. CSSIW will continue to regulate • Further services can be added through regulations • A new service-based model of regulation is created • Existing offences will be strengthened and stronger penalties for non-compliance are introduced • Service providers will designate a named responsible individual with appropriate seniority Provision of the Bill - Service Regulation Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Bill

11. Service providers will publish annual reports • The Bill provides a general and broad power to introduce a fee regime in Wales • There is a power to introduce ‘quality ratings’ following an inspection Provision of the Bill - Service Regulation Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Bill

12. The power to inspect and report on social services delivered by local authorities is retained • Annual Report to become a statutory document • Local Authorities will separately produce a local market stability reports • Regulations will prescribe the format of both reports and the timings of the market stability report • Quality Judgement ratings are equally as applicable for LA’s Provision of the Bill - Local Authority Social Services Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Bill

13. Due diligence of strategic providers • A duty will be placed on the Welsh Ministers to produce a national sector stability report • The reports will provide a picture of the local and national social care market Provision of the Bill - Market Oversight Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Bill

14. Voluntary registration will be removed • The Bill provides for new groups of staff to be required to register in the future • Allows for the creation of a new “negative register” • Duplication will be removed • The job title of “social worker” remains protected • Training of care workers, other than just social workers, will be regulated to encourage continuing improvement  Provision of the Bill - Workforce Regulation Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Bill

15. Care Council for Wales will be reconstituted as Social Care Wales • Social Care Wales to become the strategic driver of improvement across the sector, consolidating funding through a single body Provision of the Bill - Social Care Wales Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Bill

16. Broadly supportive of proposals, however: • We still don’t know all the detail • There are significant costs associated with implementation • Concerns over the introduction of fees • Concerns over the Quality Judgement Framework • Whilst we support the removal of voluntary register, we don’t believe the introduction of a negative register is helpful WLGA Perspective Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Bill

17. Questions over the capacity, resources and specialist skills required for some elements • Important to link in with requirements under the SSWB Act • As funding for improvement across the sector is consolidated through Social Care Wales need to ensure that local authorities do not lose the ability to focus on improvement or to be able to respond to performance issues WLGA Perspective Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Bill

18. Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Bill “Secure well-being for citizens and improve the quality of care and support in Wales” 9 key objectives 5 areas of provision Citizen at the heart… In conclusion… Improving information sharing and co-operation… Understanding impact of services on people in Wales… Service Regulation | LA Social Services | Market Oversight Workforce Registration | Social Care Wales Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Bill

19. Thank you Andrew Bell SSIA Knowledge Manager andrew.bell@wlga.gov.uk Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Bill