Hull City Council told its adult social care provision 'requires improvement'

THE Care Quality Commission (CQC) has found that Hull City Council's adult social care provision "requires improvement" following an inspection.

- By ANDREW SPENCE

The independent regulator found some people have been made to wait up to 867 days are their 'annual review'.

The CQC assesses how well local authorities are meeting their responsibilities to ensure people have access to adult social care and support. After assessing provision in various areas the CQC has "identified where improvements are needed" in Hull.

Adult social care provision is a considerable part of the council's role in the city. This translates to it being a highly significant proportion of its spending. The CQC's report states that more than 25p in every £1 the council spent in 2023/24 was put into adult social care, with the authority spending a total of £114.2 million on its provision.

The assessment team found:

■People were experiencing waits of up to 853 days for occupational therapy assessments, creating prolonged uncertainty for those requiring support.

■Many people were not receiving annual reviews in a timely manner, with some waiting up to 867 days which could result in their health deteriorating.

■People experienced varied transitions from child to adult services. Although a specialist transitions team carried out assessments, not everyone received one, and late referrals into adult services often limited the time available for planning.

■There were missed opportunities to coordinate preventive services alongside people, partners, and the local community. Prevention was jointly owned across the local authority due to it covering several service areas; however, a lack of coordination limited progress.

Despite the criticisms, the CQC did praise the council's provision in some areas. These include:

The local authority's Changing Futures programme demonstrated effective multi-agency working through shared case management systems, enabling early identification of people who repeatedly presented at hospital for issues that could be addressed through community support.