Category: Social Care

Developing palliative and end-of-life care research partnerships in the North East and North Cumbria: A report on the first year of the RIPEN network

A new research article from the NIHR Health and Social Care Delivery Research programme reports on the first year of the RIPEN network in the North East and North Cumbria. The project aimed to build stronger palliative and end-of-life care research collaboration across health, social care and hospice settings.

The work brought together patient and public partners, NHS trusts, universities and local organisations to create a research culture that supports inquiry, sharing of knowledge and future funding success. Activities included seminars, training events, collaborative workshops and support for early career researchers.

The evaluation found that these efforts helped establish new connections, shaped research proposals and built momentum for continued development in this important area of care. This collaborative approach has created a strong foundation for ongoing research that aims to improve quality of life and experiences at the end of life for people and families.

Read the full article here: Developing palliative and end-of-life care research partnerships in the North East and North Cumbria: A report on the first year of the RIPEN network | NIHR Journals Library

Transforming UK Clinical Research – August 2025 Update

The UK government’s August 4, 2025 update on clinical research makes notable progress in streamlining trial delivery via the UK Clinical Research Delivery (UKCRD) programme. Major highlights include:

  • A bold target to reduce clinical trial setup times to 150 days or less, enabled by digitalisation, reduced bureaucracy, and standard contracts. Phase 1 deliverables were released in April 2025 and phase 2 in June 2025.
  • The VPAG investment programme is enabling faster commercial trial delivery by establishing new Commercial Research Delivery Centres across the UK.
  • A shift toward a “right research, right setting” model aims to move more studies into primary and community care, making research more accessible locally.
  • The ‘proactive portfolio management’ approach is being adopted to enhance collaboration between NIHR and industry, including SMEs, with oversight via an Industry Advisory Group.
  • The reforms build on previous commitments, with streamlined costing and contracting frameworks already completed across NHS England and devolved systems.

Read the full update from the Department of Health and Social Care here: Transforming the UK clinical research system: August 2025 update – GOV.UK

Adult Social Care Across England

Performance Tracker Local

Institute for Government (IFG); 2025.

Examining the care gap in England. The provision of adult social care by local authorities in England should, in theory, be based on an individual’s need and ability to fund their own care. But this is not what is happening in practice.

Read the report (PDF)

A wheelchair user being lifted into a van
There is substantial variation in the levels of care England’s local authorites provide to older adults.

There exists a damaging geographical and demographic ‘care gap’ in England that means access to care for older adults is increasingly based not on need but on other factors – some perhaps less surprising, like local levels of deprivation and disability, but some more so, like the number of older people who live in an area.

That this nationwide variation is not new should not excuse the government from action. That it has grown and may well continue to grow as the over-65 population of England outpaces that of all other age groups makes that action more urgent. 

But to act well government needs to better understand the problem and how and where this care gap is forming and is at its most extreme. This is what this report, the latest in our Performance Tracker Local series supported by the Nuffield Foundation, seeks to help it do.

Adult Social Care

Sustaining the workforce

Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology (POST); 2025.

What investments and actions are required to create a sustainable health and social care workforce?

Key issues discussed included:

1. Workforce Challenges

  • High vacancy rates: Over 100,000 NHS and 131,000 ASC vacancies in 2023/24.
  • Heavy reliance on international staff: 21% of NHS and 19% of ASC workers are from overseas.
  • Retention issues: High leaver rates, use of temporary staff, and limited uptake of return-to-practice schemes.

2. Strategic Plans and Reforms

  • NHS Long-Term Workforce Plan (2023): Aims to reduce international reliance and address a 150,000 staff shortfall.
  • ASC Workforce Strategy (2024): Focuses on sector growth, education, and changing care demands.
  • Government reforms (2025): £86M for facilities, new career structures, digital platforms, and a national care commission.

3. Systemic and Structural Issues

  • Underinvestment in community care: Primary care funding fell from 8.9% to 8.1% (2015–2022).
  • Infrastructure and training gaps: Outdated systems, limited training opportunities, and fragmented ASC labour market.
  • Leadership diversity: Ethnic minority staff underrepresented in senior roles despite making up 25% of ASC workforce.

4. Policy and Organisational Changes

  • NHS England to be absorbed into DHSC (2025): Aims to reduce bureaucracy and improve care delivery.
  • New roles introduced: Enhanced care workers and others to address skill shortages, though concerns remain about regulation and outcomes.

5. Improving Retention and Productivity

  • Beyond pay: While better pay helps, non-monetary factors like flexible working, wellbeing, and leadership are crucial.
  • Management and morale: NHS is under-managed; better training and support for managers needed.
  • International recruitment concerns: Reports of exploitation led to a £12.5M fund and new guidance for ethical recruitment.

The King’s Fund: Social Care Review

The King’s Fund’s latest Social Care 360 report examines the state of adult social care in England, highlighting funding shortfalls, workforce shortages, and access challenges. While spending has risen, it hasn’t kept up with demand, leaving many without vital support. The report provides a crucial overview of where the system stands and what needs urgent attention.

Read more: Social Care 360 – The King’s Fund

Health and Social Care in England

Tackling the myths

Source: The King’s Fund

The health and care system is under intense pressure, with rising waiting times, persistent workforce shortages and patients struggling to access the care they need. As a result, patient and public satisfaction with services has dropped significantly, prompting debate and discussion about the future of health and care services. In the context of what can feel like a heated political and media discussion, the King’s Fund have taken five myths that sometimes feature in this debate and debunked them.

Read the article here.

A plan for digital health and social care

Department of Health and Social Care

Source: The King’s Fund

This plan for digital health and social care sets out a vision for a digitally enabled health and social care system and how it can be achieved. It collates existing digital strategies, plans and guidance into one single action plan. It is aimed at health and social care leaders across the system, and industry partners to help them plan for the future. The document aims to outline clear priorities for digital transformation, and begins to set out the support that will be available to local systems to enable the changes that are needed.

Social work and the impact of the Covid pandemic

Reflections from the workforce

Source: UNISON

This report is based on a survey of nearly 3,000 social workers across the UK. It aims to shed light on the working conditions of social workers, and limitations on the help they are able to give vulnerable families. Staff shortages, unmanageable caseloads and long hours are identified by social workers as major concerns affecting their ability to do their job​s. More than three quarters of social workers said they had experienced increased stress levels and 77 per cent of respondents were worried about their mental health due to the pressure they’re under. Seven in ten also said morale has decreased and almost half said they​’re ​now less likely to stay in their jobs.

Department of Health and Social Care 2020–21

Annual report and accounts

Source: House of Commons Committee of Public Accounts

This report finds that the Department for Health and Social Care lost 75 per cent of the £12 billion it spent on personal protective equipment (PPE) in the first year of the pandemic to inflated prices and kit that did not meet requirements – including £4 billion of PPE that will not be used in the NHS and needs to be disposed of. The report also voices concerns about the risk of further payouts as NHS commissioning is restructured under upcoming reforms.

Health and Social Care

Integrated care

In September 2021, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), NHS England (NHSE) and the Local Government Association (LGA) published ‘ICP engagement document: integrated care system (ICS) implementation’. Following that publication, the DHSC, NHSE and LGA conducted an engagement exercise with those who have an interest in the formation of integrated care partnerships. This paper sets out the key findings from the engagement process. It also proposes next steps and outlines how DHSC, NHSE and the LGA intend to support and guide the development of these new partnership arrangements going forward.

Integrated care communications toolkit
This toolkit was developed to help communicate the changes taking place in the health and care system. Resources have been produced to help with explaining integrated systems to the public, elected members and officers of councils, and non-executive directors. The toolkit also includes a jargon buster and some FAQs