WARRINGTON Borough Council has welcomed the latest results from a national adult social care survey, which indicate the council is listening and learning.
The Personal Social Services Adult Social Care Survey England was completed by residents earlier this year. Results show encouraging improvements in key areas of adult social care delivery.
It follows a social care inspection by the Care Quality Commission earlier this year which rated Warrington Borough Council’s adult social care and support as requires improvement, with the lowest possible score for safeguarding.
The CQC inspectors found the local authority had a lot of work to do around how they were safeguarding residents, an area they found needed rapid and widespread improvement. It included a digital triage system, that was automatically closing some safeguarding referrals without appropriate human review, creating real risks for vulnerable people.
Staff also couldn’t access these rejected safeguarding concerns without making an IT request and senior leaders weren’t fully aware of these issues until the inspection.
In the national adult social care survey a sample of residents who receive care and support services were invited to participate in the survey to share their views. The survey helps the council understand how services are impacting residents’ quality of life, safety, and wellbeing.
Positive Progress
This year’s results (2024 – 25) show that Warrington has made notable improvements:
• Quality of life: The overall social care-related quality of life score rose to 19.2, up from 18.2 last year (this figure is calculated up to a maximum score of 24)
• Feeling safe: 73.5% of respondents said they feel safe, a 7.8% increase from 2023–24
• Access to information: 64% of people said they find it easy to access information about services, a 10.2% improvement
• Impact of services: 89.1% of respondents said services help them feel safe and secure, up from 84.8%
What’s driving the improvements?
These positive changes may reflect the impact of several new initiatives introduced in partnership with the council. The launch of the Living Well Hub and Talking Points has made it easier for residents to access advice and support in their communities.
Additionally, new dementia services and day activities have provided more tailored support for individuals and carers, while the opening of further accommodation options has helped meet a wider range of needs.
Listening and Learning
While many areas have improved, the council acknowledges that overall satisfaction with care and support has declined to 58.6%, down from 63.3% last year.
Cllr Maureen McLaughlin, cabinet member for statutory health and adult social care, said: “These results reflect the good work of our adult social care teams and partners, and we’re proud to see improvements in how safe, supported, and informed people feel. At the same time, we recognise the overall satisfaction rate has dropped.
“We’re committed to learning from this feedback and working closely with service users to make meaningful improvements. We encourage everyone to continue sharing their experiences through our feedback channels and we will work with the people who access our services to ensure their voices shape the future of adult social care services in Warrington.”
Next Steps
The council will use the survey findings to inform service improvements and ensure that adult social care continues to meet the needs of residents.
Residents are encouraged to continue sharing their views through ongoing engagement opportunities, this includes providing feedback online via the council’s website.
Residents who have received adult social care support are also invited to share their views via an experience survey. This was launched in 2023, and in the last 12 months over 386 people have shared their feedback after receiving support. The results have been positive, with 97% rating services as good or better. These surveys are anonymous, but respondents can include contact details should they wish to discuss their experiences further.
For more information or to share your feedback, visit warrington.gov.uk/speak-someone-about-our-services
