First ever Adult Social Care Outcomes Framework published today

The first figures for the new adult social care outcomes framework were published today by the Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC).

The report includes data for 14 measures which are designed to enable users to compare the effectiveness of care delivered by councils responsible for adult social care services.

Six of the measures which form part of the Adult Social Care Outcomes Framework (ASCOF) are drawn from the provisional results from the second year of England’s biggest social care survey – the Adult Social Care Survey for England – which is also published today.

It shows that nearly two thirds of service users (63 per cent) were either extremely or very satisfied with the care they received – similar to the previous year.

HSCIC chief executive Tim Straughan said: “The new framework is intended to give an indication of the strengths and weaknesses of social care and its effectiveness in delivering better outcomes for people who use such services.

“It provides another rich source of information to help people build a fuller understanding of the vital and complex world of social care activity. This information can be considered alongside other HSCIC resources, such as the information published today in two other reports.

“One of those reports, the Adult Social Care Survey, is now into its second year and starting to offer an early picture of the evolving views of social care users about important elements of their lives. Provisional data from the second year of the survey points to little significant change in such views in 12 months.”

The HSCIC has also published a third report today; Social Services Activity, England – 2011-12 Provisional release, which looks at council activity in relation to assessing the need for and providing state-funded social care services. This also feeds into the Framework.

Adult Social Care Outcomes Framework 2011-12 Provisional Release is at: www.ic.nhs.uk/pubs/adultsocialcareoutcomes1112

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ASCOF data will also be made available on our Indicator Portal on 25 September at 9:30 am. https://indicators.ic.nhs.uk/webview/

Adult Social Care Survey, England 2011-12, Provisional Release is at: www.ic.nhs.uk/pubs/adultsocialcaresurvey1112

Community Care Statistics: Social Services Activity, England 2011-12, Provisional Release is at: www.ic.nhs.uk/pubs/ccs12socialservicesactivity

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Notes to editors

1. HSCIC was previously known as the NHS Information Centre. It is England’s authoritative, independent source of health and social care information. It works with a wide range of health and social care providers nationwide to provide the facts and figures that help the NHS and social services run effectively. Its role is to collect data, analyse it and convert it into useful information which helps providers improve their services and supports academics, researchers, regulators and policymakers in their work. The HSCIC also produces a wide range of statistical publications each year across a number of areas including: primary care, health and lifestyles, screening, hospital care, population and geography, social care and workforce and pay statistics.
2. In relation to the Adult Social Care Survey: The User Experience Survey Programme operates on an annual basis and is used to target areas of particular interest within Adult Social Services. Opinions are sought over a range of service areas to gain an understanding of service users’ views rather than measuring quantities of care delivered. This survey was the first of its kind to cover all service users aged 18 and over receiving services funded wholly or in part by Social Services, and aims to learn more about whether or not the services are helping them to live safely and independently in their own home and the impact on their quality of life. Services received could include residential or nursing care, home care, day care, meals, short term residential care, professional support, equipment, direct payments or a personal budget. A personal budget is a pool of money that can be managed by the service user or the council on their behalf to purchase services for the user.
3. The Department of Health announced the first Adult Social Care Outcomes Framework (ASCOF) in its Transparency in outcomes: a framework for adult social care on March 31 2011. The stated purpose of the ASCOF is two-fold: Nationally, the ASCOF gives an indication of the strengths and weaknesses of social care and effectiveness in delivering better outcomes for people who use services. This supports the Government’s role in reporting to the public and Parliament on the overall system, and influencing national policy development. Locally, one of the key uses of the ASCOF is for ‘benchmarking’ and comparison between areas. This enables councils to compare their results with others and, for example, discuss policy approaches with outstanding performers to share learning and best practice. It also supports the “local account” of social care in an area by providing high-level information to underpin the narrative of these accounts.

4. For media enquires please call 0845 257 6990 or contact media enquiries@ic.nhs.uk