Commenting on the Spending Review, SCIE’s Chief Executive Julie Jones says:

“We are very pleased to see that additional funds for social care are to be made available, rising to £2 billion per year by 2014-15. Like the NHS, more money is needed for social care year-on-year, to keep pace with rising levels of need. Whatever the resources provided, it’s vital to keep the focus on quality whilst providing cost-effectiveness. Pooling skills and knowledge across the NHS, voluntary and private sectors will be of increasing importance. Today we’ve heard about the ‘what’; that is, the funding. SCIE is here to help with the ‘how’; how quality services can be provided.

“Adult social care has challenges in areas such as provision for older people, people with disabilities and those with long-term conditions. They all deserve the opportunity to have personalised services that support them to exert choice and control with their lives. The value-for-money agenda is difficult at this time, but not impossible. Innovation is important as there are many disadvantaged and vulnerable people who are likely to be struggling even more in the future. The workforce, people who uses services, their carers and commissioners of services all need to know that innovation is supporting them.”

http://www.scie.org.uk/news/mediareleases/2010/201010.asp