Dear Prime Minister,
Congratulations on your appointment.
For the past thirteen years, Care Campaign for the Vulnerable (CCFTV) has worked alongside thousands of families, care providers, commissioners and health and social care professionals. During that time, we have seen exceptional care delivered every day, but we have also seen a system that too often places unnecessary pressure on those who rely on it and those who work within it.
Your commitment to tackling the social care crisis is welcome. You have spoken about using your political capital to finally address an issue that governments have avoided for decades. We urge you to seize this opportunity.
However, ambition alone will not transform social care. Reform must be backed by sustainable, long-term funding. The sector has heard promises before. What it now needs is a clear, fully funded plan that gives providers, staff and families confidence that meaningful change is coming.
CCFTV believes there are several actions your Government should prioritise immediately.
Place safety at the heart of social care reform. Every person receiving care deserves to feel safe, every family deserves reassurance, and every provider should be supported to deliver the highest standards.
Recognise families as true partners in care. Families bring invaluable knowledge and should be listened to, involved in decisions and treated with respect when concerns are raised.
Invest in the workforce. Recruitment and retention will only improve when care professionals receive the recognition, training and career opportunities they deserve.
Embrace ethical technology that improves care, prevents avoidable harm and supports the workforce. Falls prevention, acoustic monitoring, artificial intelligence and other innovations can improve outcomes while reducing unnecessary pressure on the NHS when implemented responsibly.
Improve transparency and accountability across the sector so concerns are addressed early, lessons are learned and public confidence grows.
Give dementia the national priority it deserves. As the number of people living with dementia continues to rise, specialist dementia care, education and research must become central to any long-term social care strategy.
Most importantly, recognise that investment in social care is not simply a cost. It is an investment that can reduce avoidable hospital admissions, delayed discharges, ambulance call-outs and pressure across the NHS. Prevention is not only better for people – it is better value for the taxpayer.
After thirteen years of supporting families, we remain optimistic because we know what good care looks like. We have seen dedicated professionals achieve extraordinary things despite enormous pressures. They deserve a system that supports them rather than one that constantly asks them to do more with less.
CCFTV stands ready to work with your Government, providers, regulators and families to help shape practical, evidence-based reform. We would welcome the opportunity to meet with you and your ministers to share the experiences of the thousands of families we have supported over the last thirteen years.
Social care has waited long enough. Now is the time to match ambition with action.
Jayne Connery FRSA FRSPH
Founder & Director
Care Campaign for the Vulnerable (CCFTV)
