Dudley Strategy for Tackling Health Inequalities 2010-15

8.2 SOCIAL CAREAdult Social CareSocial Care in Dudley is delivered across two Council Directorates, the Directorate ofAdult, Community and Housing Services and the Directorate of Children‟s Servicesas well as through the Dudley Walsall Mental Health Trust.The Directorate of Adult, Community and Housing Services commission services tomeet the assessed need of adults in Dudley who require social care services. This isprovided to service user groups such as- Older people- Adults with physical disabilities- Adults with learning disabilities- Adults with sensory impairmentsServices are commissioned by the Directorate of Adult, Community and HousingServices to meet these needs. These services are provided by either the private andindependent sector or the Council‟s in-house provision. Strategic arrangement ofprovision across these sectors is focussed on key activities such as hospitaldischarge, intermediate care and promoting independence or „re-ablement.‟ TheDudley Health and Social Care Commissioning Framework and Strategy 2008-13(NHS Dudley and Dudley MBC, 2008) is the over-arching statement of ourcommissioning intention which include focus on health inequalities and specific jointcommissioning activity such as in mental health, learning disabilities or specific partsof older people‟s services e.g. equipment services.Through a grant-funding programme, the Directorate of Adult, Community andHousing also supports numerous small providers of services in the Borough who aresupporting specific communities such as black and minority ethnic communities inDudley.Assessment of individuals is largely undertaken in a locality basis across the fivedistricts of the Borough. This means that locality teams are closely linked to all theareas that they serve and as such are close to the concerns of local communities.Specialist services for people with learning disabilities are also arrangedgeographically but on a North-South basis. Community Care Development Workersfor the teams support work to engage even more closely with people from black andminority ethnic groups across the Borough. People with complex disabilities aresupported through an Independent Living Team with a focus on promotingindependence. Occupational Therapy services play a key role in the overallassessment and support process e.g. in the assessment for the provision ofequipment where use of such equipment will allow people to be more independent.Social Work staff also work in the hospital setting to ensure a whole-system approachto hospital discharge, ensuring safe transition across a pathway from hospital tocommunity settings.183