Hot Topic: Regulation Of Care
The Regulation of Care (Scotland) Act 2001 established both the Care Commission, which regulates and inspects care services in Scotland, and the Scottish Social Services Council, which regulates the workforce.
Prior to the RoC Act, local authorities were responsible for setting standards and inspecting private and voluntary sector services in their area. The 2001 Act removed that responsibility from local authorities, and brought direct service provision by those authorities within the same regulatory regime as private and voluntary sector services. It also established the National Care Standards, against which all services would be inspected.
In 2005, the Social Work Inspection Agency (SWIA) was set up to inspect local authority social work services, and has recently completed performance inspections of all 32 councils.
In 2011, the regulatory system is set to change again: the Public Services Reform (Scotland) Bill, introduced to the Scottish Parliament in 2009, proposes to dissolve both the Care Commission and SWIA and set up a new scrutiny body, the Social Care and Social Work Improvement Agency (SCSWIS), which will bring together the functions of both existing bodies. SCSWIS will also incorporate part of the current role of Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Education (HMIE) in relation to children’s services and child protection.
The legislation will also create a new scrutiny body for health, Healthcare Improvement Scotland, which will bring together the functions of NHS QIS (Quality Improvement Scotland) and the existing functions of the Care Commission in relation to independent healthcare regulation.
Latest news
CCPS gives evidence to Scottish Parliament on the Public Services Reform Bill
On 1 September 2009, CCPS (represented by Annie Gunner Logan - Director) appeared before the Education and Lifelong Learning Committee of the Scottish Parliament to give evidence on the Bill, and in particular on the establishment of SCSWIS. The transcript of this evidence session can be read on the Scottish Parliament website. Written evidence submitted by CCPS can also be found using the links listed on the left hand side of this page.
On 9 September 2009, CCPS (represented by Nigel Henderson - Convener) appeared before the Health and Sport Committee of the Scottish Parliament to give evidence on the Bill. The written transcript of this session can be read on the Scottish Parliament website. Written evidence submitted by CCPS can also be found using the links listed on the left hand side of this page.
CCPS joins Scottish Government Reference Group on the Public Services Reform Bill
The Scottish Government has convened a Reference Group of key stakeholders to act as a sounding board for the options and ideas being developed for the new scrutiny bodies. CCPS has joined the group alongside colleagues from ADSW, COSLA and the existing scrutiny bodies.
Care Commission review of the new ‘gradings’ system
The Care Commission introduced a new approach to inspection in 2008. All services now complete a self-evaluation process against a series of quality themes based on the national care standards, and award themselves gradings for each theme on a scale of 1-6. Care Commission Officers validate (or change) those grades during the course of inspections, looking at all the evidence from the self-evaluation. This new system was reviewed after the first year: CCPS provided comprehensive feedback from members as part of the review.
Scottish Social Services Council announcement on care at home, and end dates for registration
SSSC Registration came into force on April 30 2009 that will effectively set deadlines for registration with the SSSC for categories of the register that are currently open. The legislation specifies "Required Registration" dates for each category of the register after which employers will be committing an offence if, without reasonable excuse, they employ a worker in a post subject to registration, who is not registered with the SSSC, or other relevant regulatory body, e.g. the Nursing and Midwifery Council. The SSSC will contact employers to advise when applications for registration must be submitted to guarantee registration by the required date. Also, Adam Ingram, Minister for Children and Early Years, announced on 24 June that managers of care at home services will now be included in the registration process. The decision has been made in recognition of the increasing trend for care at home services to be jointly registered to provide housing support services. To ensure concurrent registration of managers in both services, registration of housing support staff will now not commence until December 2010, not Autumn 2009 as had previously been anticipated. Following this decision, the SSSC will consult with the sector on qualifications and fee levels.