Cornwall adult social care rated good by CQC
CQC praises Cornwall Council for strong partnership efforts but notes some areas for improvement
Cornwall Council has been rated as good by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) for its provision of adult social care services.
The assessment highlights committed leadership and strong partnerships aiding Cornwall’s efforts to meet legal responsibilities under the Care Act 2014.
With a focus on promoting wellbeing and independence, the council is applauded for its effective collaboration with the NHS and voluntary organisations.
However, CQC identified areas requiring improvement, including delays in annual care reviews and advocacy support.
Each of these nine areas has a score out of four, with one being the evidence shows significant shortfalls, and four showing an exceptional standard.
Assessing people’s needs = 2
Supporting people to lead healthier lives = 3
Equity in experience and outcomes = 3
Care provision, integration and continuity of care = 3
Partnership and communities = 3
Safe pathways, systems and transitions = 3
Safeguarding = 2
Governance, management and sustainability = 3
Learning, improvement and innovation = 3
Chris Badger, CQC’s chief inspector of adult social care, stated, "During our assessment of Cornwall Council, we found committed leadership with a clear understanding of the challenges facing the area, including an ageing population, rural isolation, and workforce pressures.
“There was a positive culture of learning and improvement, with staff feeling heard and able to influence systems. Feedback was leading to real, tangible changes, and the authority had established a group with responsibility for embedding learning from reviews, complaints and audits into frontline practice.
“Encouragingly, we saw more than 71% of people in Cornwall reported being satisfied with their care and support, significantly higher than the national average, while over 81% said they felt in control of their daily lives.
“We also saw strong partnership working between the authority, the NHS and voluntary sector organisations. This collaboration is helping people move safely between services, particularly when leaving hospital. Staff were working hard to make this happen, and people told us they felt listened to and well supported during what can often be a difficult time.
“However, there are areas where improvement is needed. Some people are waiting too long for their annual care reviews, meaning changes in their needs may not be identified quickly enough."
The council achieved a ‘good’ standard (3 out of 4) in seven of the nine areas assessed.
Nonetheless, issues such as delays in access to advocacy services and insufficient availability of British Sign Language interpreters were flagged.
Cornwall Council Cabinet Lead for Adult Social Care and Health Partnerships Jim McKenna said, “I’m very pleased with this rating, which recognises the hard work of staff, voluntary organisations and people with lived experience who have all contributed to the many improvements that have been made in our journey to make sure people in Cornwall receive a good standard of care.
“It feels really special, and fitting that CQC recognised the work that people with lived experience have done to support our services here in Cornwall, recognising the very valuable contribution Citizen Checkers have made when checking the quality of care and support services in Cornwall, and also the wonderful work of those who are part of our Co-production board, who meet regularly to be part of our service design.
“We will continue to build on the strengths that have been recognised, as well as working on those areas where we need to improve; all the officers involved and myself will carry on in their hard work to continue to improve the standard of care people receive in Cornwall.”
The complete assessment will be publicly released on the CQC website on 29th May.