[New] Happy New Year from everyone at The Carer!

Welcome to the last edition of The CARER for 2022!

Perhaps not as to tumultuous as 2020 and 2021 but a turbulent year nevertheless for the country and the adult social care sector

At the very beginning of the year we still had isolation rules in place and they were in the process revised down to 14 days Up to half of care homes at the time were refusing to accept new residents as the staffing crisis intensified leading to calls for a volunteer army to alleviate the crisis

The mandatory vaccine policy for care staff was in place However, the government revoked its policy for NHS care staff and a consultation on mandatory vaccines the care staff followed, resulting in mandatory vaccination being revoked on March 15 The government also introduced a policy to prioritise care residents with booster shots

In the same month we saw that the government was defeated in the House of Lords with its proposed changes to the care cap following which we saw calls by campaigners to introduce a legal right for families to remain in contact with their loved ones in care settings

This was followed by news that the effectiveness of vaccines wavered after three months among care home residents and the then Prime Minister Boris Johnson proposed a care Levy to be added to National Insurance contributions

April saw the discharging of hospital patients into care environments deemed unlawful by the High Court, and at the same time we saw calls for the immigration Visa rules to be scrapped followed by report revealing that over 500 000 people were waiting for social care

Another report in May revealed that the government had seriously underestimated its care reforms by as much as £10 billion while in June the government announced the biggest shakeup to health and social leadership in a generation Come July a report revealed the staggering cost of waste and personal protection equipment (PPE) with £4 billion of taxpayer money wasted on a new Covid PPE

The same month also saw the Labour Party call for a national care service and at the same time the government kicked the can down the road once again in social care reform until 2025

In July Baroness Hallett officially launched the UK Covid-19 enquiry opening its first investigation into how well prepared the UK was for the pandemic August saw the Health Secretary order an increase in overseas recruitment to solve the sector staffing crisis and it was revealed that operators were struggling to compete with supermarkets’ rates of pay

September saw new Prime Minister Liz Truss, who abolished the proposed Social Care Levy, and we also saw the death of our longest reigning monarch Queen Elizabeth II

Further reports revealed a care system in crisis and gridlocked, with vacancy soaring to the highest level at 52% with the adult social care workforce shrinking for the very first time

October saw Liz Truss forced out of office after only 44 days to make way for our new Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, and Chancellor Jeremy Hunt

November saw Parliament hold a debate to end isolation in care environments and saw the new Chancellor increase social care funding but not to the level he had himself had called for when he was chair of a health select committee The Chancellor also announced a delay to adult social care reform for 2 years

We also saw positive results for a new Alzheimer s drug bringing renewed hope to sufferers of this devastating disease and at the same time we saw the release of former Health Secretary Matt Hancock s diaries which observers including me denounced as a blame game

We also saw at legal challenge to the government s vaccination policy in care workers fail at an industrial tribu- nal and the news that the NHS had visited every care home in England to offer vaccines ahead of Christmas Have I left anything out? So a very challenging year for the sector, but once again a testament to the sector’s resilience its ability to adapt and its ability to continue to provide the care that it does despite the challenges it faces

Oh, there was one more thing! In August this year we launched our very first “Afternoon Tea Week” competition will be invited care homes around the country to send in their stories and how they were celebrating this quintessentially British tradition with the prize being a luxury hamper packed with Scottish goodies!

The reason I mention this is we were staggered here at THE CARER with the response we received Don t take my word for it have a look here: https://issuu com/thecarer/docs/the carer digital issue 114/28

We were overwhelmed and again a testament to the hard work and dedication inspiration enjoyment job satisfaction those in the sector demonstrate on a day-to-day basis

We were delighted when we were at a tradeshow in September that the winners of the competition Hutten View care home in Brentwood paid our stand visit!

We were so encouraged by the response we introduced a competition for a festive hamper for one lucky care home that really pushed the boat out this Christmas (see page 5)

So please do continue to share your stories of awards and any other birthday celebrations fundraising sports events singing and dancing you name it we are receiving them at the moment- all feelgood stories which highlight the dedication commitment and devotion staff display in every day improving the well-being of the residents!

Once again as we bring 2022 to a close we here at THE CARER will take this opportunity to thank you all readers contributors, sector organisations, and our valued advertisers who without their support what we do would not be possible a big thank you and a very happy New Year to you all!