News & Events

2012 promises to be another eventful and challenging year.  The slow pace of economic recovery will continue to place considerable pressures on public resources, which in turn will impact on the availability of services, including short breaks and respite care. 

However we believe there are grounds to be optimistic.

New developments such as the Change Fund, the implementation of the Self Directed Support Bill and, we hope, the government’s ongoing support of the Short Breaks Fund will help to stimulate more flexible and creative approaches to delivering assistance to families, carers and those they support. The continuing shift towards more personalised, outcome-focused planning will open up new possibilities for how resources are directed, achieving better value in the process.

The importance of community based supports and preventative solutions (key delivery areas for Third Sector organisations) will continue to be a prominent focus for policy development in 2012. 

We expect the Scottish Government and COSLA to take further steps to implement the actions contained in the Carers Strategy for Scotland including the development of a Carers’ Rights Charter and a Carers’ Parliament.  There will also be a reassessment of the unfulfilled Manifesto commitment to introduce a ‘guaranteed annual entitlement to breaks from caring for those in greatest need’. 

Scottish local government elections in May present a crucial opportunity to remind candidates across the political spectrum of the vital role played by families and carers, their expertise, knowledge and the quality of care they give.  We will take this opportunity to reinforce the message that families and carers are essential partners in the delivery of care but their efforts cannot be sustained without help from local authorities and their community planning partners – including the provision of good quality breaks.  Greater efforts to achieve equity in the availability and quality of support across all local authority areas in Scotland will be another key message.

Shared Care Scotland will be involving itself in all these developments in 2012, working collaboratively with others and contributing our knowledge and experience to the very best of our abilities.

Our research project into people's experience of respite care, carried out with our National Carer Organisation partners and IRISS, is due to be published in early spring. This, together with our 2010 report into local authority planning of short breaks, ‘It’s About Time’, and the learning we are gaining from the Short Breaks Fund projects, will provide us with a comprehensive knowledge base to inform our efforts in 2012 and beyond.

Driving all our work of course is our Purpose, Vision and Values which are reproduced below.

We very much look forward to staying in touch with you over the coming year and wish you a very successful 2012.

 From Shared Care Scotland 

“Shared Care Scotland exists to improve the quality, choice and availability of short breaks (respite care) provision across Scotland.

Our vision is a Scotland where everyone who receives or provides unpaid care can live happy and fulfilled lives with the support they need to take regular, quality breaks from the demands of their caring situations”

As an organisation we aim to be:
 
•           A positive ‘forum’ where people can connect, collaborate and be inspired
•           At the forefront of innovation in short break planning and practice
•           An organisation that learns and evolves with experience
•           Responsible, reliable and relevant
•           Passionate, practical and positive
•           Ambitious, focused and successful”

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