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How do we ‘unstick’ social care reform across the four UK countries?

We partnered with the Nuffield Trust to host a webinar on 7th June 2023, which explored shared challenges in implementing social care reform.

The Centre for Care and The Nuffield Trust presents 'How do we ‘unstick’ social care reform across the four UK countries' Online event 7th June 12:30- 14:00 BST

We have partnered with the Nuffield Trust to host a webinar on 7th June, with colleagues from across the four nations, which will explore shared challenges in implementing social care reform.

Date: Wednesday 7th June 2023

Online event. Recording is now available, press play below.

About the seminar

Two decades on from the devolution of social care policy, differences between the UK’s four social care systems exist, but the fundamentals are largely the same: social care, as it currently stands, is not delivering care that is of consistent quality and which enables people to lead independent and fulfilling lives. All four countries of the UK are grappling with how to meet the growing need for care within the context of stretched budgets and a shrinking workforce.

With funding squeezes and political instability now jeopardising reform plans across the UK, this online webinar will bring together the Centre for Care, the Nuffield Trust, University of Birmingham and respondents across the four nations to discuss shared challenges in implementing social care reform in England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. How can we ‘unstick’ reform? And what lessons can the countries learn from each other?

Speakers: 

Chair: Natasha Curry, Deputy Director of Policy, Nuffield Trust

Camille Oung and Emma Dodsworth from the Nuffield Trust built on Adult social care across the four countries to provide an overview of social care in the four nations, and discussed some of the reasons why social care reform remains stagnant.

Catherine Needham from Centre for Care and University of Birmingham and Patrick Hall from the University of Birmingham drew from their new book Social Care in the UK’s Four Nations: Between Two Paradigms to take a closer look at the theoretical underpinnings of social care policy, specifically raising questions about the role of ‘standardisation’ and ‘differentiation’ in future reform of the social care sector. They addressed the important question of why each nation’s social care system, when given equal capacity to make changes, are taking different forms.

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