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Blog

The only way to deliver better care is for the NHS and local authorities to work together more closely – here are seven steps to make it happen in 2026

Jess McGregor, President of ADASS, and Matthew Taylor, CEO of NHS Confederation, discuss the seven steps to deliver better care with the NHS and local authorities working together.
18 December 2025
Blog

Peterborough City Council’s digital transformation journey: empowering its workforce and delivering better outcomes for people 

Tina Hornsby shares how digital innovation at Peterborough City Council, including its use of AI is improving outcomes for social care practitioners and people who draw on care and support. 
15 December 2025
Blog

Introducing Rashpal Bishop, ADASS’ incoming Vice President in 2026 

Rashpal Bishop is due to take up the post of ADASS Vice President and Trustee in 2026. In her first blog for the Association, she introduces herself and tells us a bit about her dual passion for digital and carers, and why she was inspired to stand as ADASS Vice President. 
12 December 2025
Blog

Reframing the conversation: Reflections on a year of narrative change training

Over the past year, I’ve had the privilege of delivering our How to Talk About Social Care training to ADASS members across England, writes ADASS Engagement Officer Phoebe Kerr. This work is funded thanks to the generous support of the Rayne Foundation and is linked to our partnership with the Local Government Association (LGA), Think […]
9 December 2025
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
Press Releases

High-cost social care packages for young adults surge by almost a third in a single year

This year's Autumn Survey has revealed that high-cost social care packages for young people surge by almost a third in a single year.
25 November 2025
Close-up of a woman with her sister who has Down syndrome smiling at each other face to face. They are both wearing warm clothing on a cold winter morning. The park is located in Gateshead.
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
Press Releases

Government’s aim to shift health and care from hospital to community thrown into doubt by new social care report

Warm words for adult social care must be matched by action to meet Government’s health shifts and support more people to stay at home, say care leaders. Councils are being forced to cut back on early care and support to prevent people’s health and wellbeing deteriorating, as they struggle to meet the rising cost of […]
15 July 2025
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