Shropshire Council

Margaret's story

People are at the centre of what we do and we routinely check that social care services actually meet people's changing needs by ensuring we review individual cases regularly, and undertaking surveys with our users and carers.

Ensuring good quality services can be difficult to define, and sometimes it can just be a case of ensuring different agencies communicate and work well together to achieve the best outcomes for people.

Here is an example of how we ensure good quality outcomes:

Margaret was an independent lady, who’d not previously needed any support in her day to day life. Following a period of illness and a fall which led to a loss of confidence and low mood, we were approached to see if she could be eligible for some support from the Council. We undertook an assessment with her which confirmed that she had eligible needs and it was deemed appropriate for her to have some support to meet her personal care needs in particular. Margaret agreed to have some morning personal care and support to help her prepare her lunch.

However, a review carried out six weeks later highlighted that she still felt isolated and her mood continued to be a major concern. Although the support she was receiving was meeting her personal and practical needs, the isolation she was feeling was impacting on her mental well-being. To address this we contacted the Royal Voluntary Service, Housing Support Services and Age UK, all of which were able to offer a befriending service for her on a weekly basis. We were also able to arrange, through a referral to the occupational therapist, a Rutland Trolley (a piece of mobile equipment which is a combination of a tray on a trolley), which enabled her to easily transport her lunch or any other items from one place to another around her home.

As a result, Margaret’s independence and well-being improved greatly and she was much happier with her revised arrangements. As the number of befriending hours were greater than her original care package, and along with the use of the Rutland Trolley, she was able to have some of her needs met in a more cost effective way which also achieved far better outcomes for her too.

Jane Smith, Social Worker, People2People