News & campaigns
Press Releases / Statements
ADASS President’s NCASC 2025 speech
ADASS President, Jess McGregor, opens the National Children and Adult Services Conference (NCASC) 2025.
26 November 2025
Blog
We can all agree social care is complex. But does that help?
Professor Catherine Needham, Professor of Public Policy and Public Management at the University of Birmingham and Associate Director of SSCR, reflects on the complexity of social care and why it must be approached as an interconnected ecosystem.
24 November 2025
Blog
Strengthening support for unpaid carers: practical guidance for adult social services
To mark Carers Rights Day 2025, this blog brings together a set of key resources designed to help Directors of adult social services, local authorities, and partner organisations strengthen support for unpaid carers. These tools offer practical guidance, examples of good practice, and insights from across the sector to inform local improvement work. Below, we […]
20 November 2025
Blog
What I took from a Casey Commission evidence session — and why people must be at the heart of reform
Jess McGregor, ADASS President and Director of Adult Social Care at Camden Council, reflects on an early roundtable for Baroness Louise Casey’s Independent Commission on Adult Social Care.
18 November 2025
Blog
From deprivation of liberty to liberty protection – why we need a different approach to safeguarding liberty
Part 1: From Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards to Liberty Protection Safeguards Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (DoLS) are the current legal protections for people who lack capacity and are deprived of their liberty in residential care or hospital settings. Liberty Protection Safeguards (LPS) are the new system the Government plans to start implementing later in this […]
17 November 2025
Blog
A community OT shares how social prescribing can transform lives
To celebrate Occupational Therapy Week 2025, William Dyett, an Occupational Therapy Apprentice, looks at the role of social prescribing and why occupational therapists can make the case for prevention to improve positive outcomes for people and local authorities.
7 November 2025
Blog
“We’ve always cared”: black women’s experiences in the care sector
Every October, Black History Month in the UK invites us to reflect on the contributions, struggles, and triumphs of Black communities. For Black women in the care sector, this month is more than a celebration it’s a reminder of a legacy of labour, resilience and resistance that stretches back generations, writes Georgia Chimbani.
4 November 2025
Blog
Unpaid caring – the hidden health inequality we can no longer ignore and why we must intervene to prevent ill-health in carers
Laura Greene, Head of Volunteering & Community Partnerships and Lead for Unpaid Carers at Kingston and Richmond NHS Foundation Trust, discusses the significant impact of caring and hospital discharge on carers’ health, provides insight on preventive health improvement programmes, and why adult social care directors are best placed to reframe caring as a determinant of health.
20 October 2025
Blog
Equality isn’t optional: anchoring our leadership in law and duty
Jess McGregor, ADASS President, and Nick Presmeg, ADASS Policy and Practice Trustee, reflect on how equality, equity and inclusion remain core to confident, lawful and values-led leadership in adult social care.
14 October 2025
Blog
Reflections from Labour Party Conference – and a call for adult social care to take its rightful place in the national conversation
By Jess McGregor, ADASS President Earlier this week, I attended the Labour Party Conference in Liverpool. The energy and commitment to public service were palpable, but I left wanting to hear more about where adult social care sits in the Government’s agenda. At a Carers Trust roundtable, I was introduced to a young carer who, […]
3 October 2025
Blog
Launching the ADASS Research Group: Influencing the future of social care
ADASS has launched a new research group to strengthen collaboration and shape future priorities. In this first update, Chair of the ADASS Research Group, Chris Lehmann, sets out the group’s plans, followed by Professor Yvonne Birks on why partnerships between research and practice are vital to improving adult social care.
15 September 2025
Blog
Past reflections and a vision for the future
Julia Ross reflects on her 30-year career spanning health and social care, the stories and people which have shaped her professional life and future developments in social care.
19 August 2025
Blog
From tragedy to preparedness: Adult social care’s voice in the Covid-19 Public Inquiry
By Cathie Williams, former ADASS CEO Five years ago we were in the thick of the pandemic. Now, the Hearings for the Social Care Module of the Public Inquiry have finished, the Inquiry is taking closing statements and we will await the report. I want to mark both the dreadfulness of that period, the magnificence […]
15 August 2025
Blog
Lucky enough to get old – housing that supports healthy ageing
Holly Holder, Senior Consultant at Campbell Tickell, highlights the urgent need for more accessible, affordable housing for older people in England. Here she calls for national policy change, market incentives, as well as on-going local action to ensure everyone can age with dignity, independence, and choice.
5 August 2025
Blog
Looking through the right end of the telescope: How we can approach efficiency and productivity in adult social care from the right starting place
ADASS Vice President Phil Holmes gives his personal take on efficiency and productivity in adult social care and how a wrong-headed approach risks increasing costs and missing opportunities.
18 July 2025
Blog
Live more: shifting support upstream for people and families living with dementia
Bernie Enright, Executive Director of Adult Social Care at Manchester City Council and Ewan King, Chief Executive of Shared Lives Plus, discuss their exciting new initiative to help people with dementia.
17 July 2025
Blog
Equity, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion at the heart of care
By Jess McGregor, ADASS President At ADASS, we represent leaders across adult social care who are united by a shared commitment: to enable people to live good lives, with dignity, independence, and connection — whatever their background, identity or circumstances. Across the country, every day, adult social care supports people who bring with them a […]
16 July 2025
Blog
The narrative isn’t matched by action: 2025 Spring Survey reflections
Following the launch of our 2025 Spring Survey, ADASS Director of Policy and Analysis Michael Chard reflects on the growing disconnect between the Government’s rhetoric and reality.
15 July 2025
Blog
Everyday TEC: Changing the way we talk about Technology Enabled Care
By Alyson Scurfield, Chief Executive of TSA, the national advisory body for Technology Enabled Care When I speak to local authorities about Technology Enabled Care (TEC), one of the issues that often comes up is awareness, or lack of it. Front line workers struggle to explain care technology and its benefits to the people, families […]
7 July 2025
Blog
More than a seat at the table: Co-producing events with people with lived experience
Jennifer Pearl, a member of the National Co-production Advisory Group (NCAG), part of Think Local Act Personal (TLAP), reflects on her journey with co-production in adult social care, emphasising the importance of ensuring opportunities are genuinely inclusive and accessible for people. After becoming unwell, aged 47, and after many episodes in hospital, I eventually recovered […]
2 July 2025
Blog
Key takeaways from the European Social Services Network Conference 2025
ADASS President, Jess McGregor, shares her key insights from the event, including the similarities and differences in adult social care across Europe, our achievements to reform the sector in England and why there’s still more work to do to ensure that it’s truly diverse and inclusive.
27 June 2025
Blog
What the Casey Commission can take away from Australia’s National Disability Insurance Scheme
ADASS Engagement Officer, Phoebe Kerr, reflects on how the National Disability Insurance Scheme in Australia has empowered people who draw on care and support the choice to live their lives on their own terms, and what both countries might learn from each other as they strive for more person-centred care.
17 June 2025
Blog
Reflections on the contribution of our ageing population to society
Dr Janet Melville-Wiseman challenges negative misconceptions of older people and shares her insights on the valuable contribution they make to society.
12 June 2025
Blog
Innovating to support independence: The Kirklees approach to Community Equipment Services
Mark Rance, Contract Manager for Kirklees Integrated Community Equipment Services (KICES), shares how their innovative model is transforming equipment services to support people to live independently.
19 May 2025
