Publications

The scale of the difficulties facing adult social care in England means that doing nothing is no longer an option. Policy-makers need to identify which of the problems facing social care they most want to tackle, and this briefing paper is intended to aid the process by identifying and exploring those key challenges.

This report sets out the key issues facing the home care sector based on discussions with commissioners, providers and national social care organisations.

Policy-makers have outlined their ambitions to provide joined-up care closer to home and enable people to remain independent and in their own homes. Home care will be a central component of realising these ambitions. However, there are serious concerns about the state of the home care market and the quality of care service users receive.

Technology is rarely the saviour of health services in the way that politicians hope – at least in the short term. It takes time to implement, requires shifts in workforce, and investment – posing real dilemmas for a cash-strapped NHS.

Social care is complex, poorly understood and widely perceived as unfair – while facing unprecedented pressures. This paper explains the current pressures on social care, the impact this is having in England, and sets out the barriers and potential solutions to funding reform.

In recent years, the digital agenda in health care has been the subject of an array of promises and plans. Following on from the Wachter review of health technology, our new briefing assesses the progress made and what needs to happen next.

Our report, which calls for a single quality improvement strategy for the NHS in England, offers 10 design principles to guide the development of the strategy. However, the authors warn, it will take time for such a strategy to deliver results.

A statement from the Barker Commission to the Chancellor ahead of the Spending Review on the state of social care and its funding.

The NHS is being asked to make large productivity savings. This report argues that, rather than looking at efficiency and costs, the NHS should be focusing on getting better value from its budget.

This paper tells the story of the journey made by the District Health Board for Canterbury, New Zealand, towards its goal of providing integrated care for all. It looks at the drivers for change and the leadership values shown by key players.

What can the health and social care system in England learn from the experiences of the other countries of the United Kingdom?

Paying for social care: Beyond Dilnot discusses the history of social care reform and considers the present and future funding pressures on the system. The paper calls for health and social care services to be considered as a single system with a new framework being put in place for planning and cost-sharing.