THURROCK Council has received an upbeat assessment of its adult social care services after a visit from government inspectors.

There were criticisms of the service and areas for concern, but overall Thurrock has been designated as a service that is possibly in the top ten per cent of service providers in the UK. It has been rated as 'good'.

Local services were subject to a recent visit from the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and its inspectors and largely passed muster.

James Bullion, CQC's chief inspector of adult social care and integrated care, said: "At this assessment, we found Thurrock Council was delivering good access to adult social care for people living in the area, with strong, collaborative working across health and care services, and a clear commitment to helping people live well in their communities.

"People spoke positively about the support they received, with many reporting consistencies in staffing and confidence in the skills and expertise of professionals involved in their care. They told us they felt understood, listened to, and that staff took time to engage with them in a way that respected their individual needs.

"We saw reablement and crisis response services working effectively to help people stay at home and regain their independence. The urgent response team met its two-hour target in 90% of cases, ensuring people received timely support and avoiding unnecessary hospital admissions. People also told us about the positive impact of a scheme that helped them better access essential equipment, allowing them to remain safe and independent at home.

"Carers had access to a wide range of practical and emotional support, including peer groups and counselling. Carers also used direct payments in flexible ways, including using it for exercise classes, home-based respite, and short breaks which helped them feel more supported and better able to manage their caring responsibilities.

"Despite many strengths, inclusion wasn't always consistent. People said they struggled to get information in accessible formats. Staff sometimes over relied on family members to interpret instead of offering and arranging professional services.

"Others found the website difficult to navigate, and translation options unclear, which left non-English speakers at risk of missing out on support.

"Thurrock Council had already taken steps to improve this by co-producing easy-read information with people with lived experience and having sign video systems and instant translation services available.  

"Overall, Thurrock Council should be really pleased with the many positive findings in our report and their good rating. They've already told us how they're planning to build on this further and we look forward to seeing how their plans mature."

The assessment team found:

1. Partnerships and communities were a strong feature of the local authority's work, with joint working arrangements embedded to positively impact peoples' health and wellbeing. Collaborative working was deeply embedded across services, reflecting a person-centred approach and a shared vision for better outcomes.
2. People in Thurrock had easy access to integrated health and social care support within their communities. They told inspectors that joint working across agencies provided holistic support and made it easier to stay well in their local area.
3. Multi-disciplinary teams worked well to prevent unnecessary hospital admissions, and people highlighted the additional help of the wellbeing team and local area coordinators, which they said often went beyond what they expected from standard care.
4. The local authority had commissioned a new carers service which provided specialist support groups, including tailored support for young carers.
5. Thurrock Council developed several innovative wellbeing initiatives to improve service delivery; these interventions had reflected a community-first strategy to ensure vulnerable individuals remained engaged and had sought to prevent social isolation.
6. Safeguarding processes were well established, with inspectors finding clear guidance in place to support consistent decision-making. The local authority made safeguarding personal, with 95% of people consulted about their expectations and 97% of those people reporting their desired outcomes were fully or partially met.
7. The local authority promoted a culture of continuous learning, giving staff access to ongoing training and development to support safe delivery of Care Act duties. It also took part in independent reviews, acted on audits, and used feedback and complaints to improve services.

However, the assessment team also found:

1. Some people were disappointed by the loss of a dedicated learning disability team but told us they continued to receive skilled and consistent support from staff.
2. The local authority had incomplete data collection on protected characteristics, limiting the effectiveness of targeted health interventions.

It was also noted by inspectors that scrutiny of adult social care had historically had 'limitations'. They included rigid response times, reduced debate and meetings that had strict time constraints, limiting deep analysis which resulted in limited time to effectively scrutinise and follow up issues of concern. 

However, it was recognised that changes to the scrutiny process, including splitting the scrutiny role away from combined scrutiny of children's services, had proved beneficial.

Hopes were high, going into the inspection, that the borough service would get the highest accolade, 'Outstanding.', However, achievement of 'Good' has been applauded from within the council. It was also accomplished while contributing to the cash-strapped authority's budget savings.

The council estimated it would spend £71,503,000.00 of its total budget on Adult Social Care in 2023/24. Its actual spend was £65,445,000.00, which is 25.89% of the total budget and £6,058,000.00 less than estimated. 

Cllr Mark Hooper, cabinet member for health and wellbeing, said: "We were proud to contribute to this important national programme, the first time in over 10 years that an assessment programme of such depth and rigour has taken place. Today we welcome CQC's formal assessment of how well we in Thurrock are fulfilling our adult social care duties.

This report and our strong 'Good' rating offers further assurance that we, the council, alongside our care and health partners, are working together to not only keep our vulnerable residents safe and well, but to put them at the centre of their care planning and decision making. 

I would like to thank our social care staff for the hard work and professionalism they show each and every day in delivering these services.

"Supporting those in our society who receive care from us is, and always will be, the single greatest priority of this council." 

Council leader Cllr Lynn Worrall added: "This is an amazing achievement, and alongside our Children's Services being recognised as Ofsted Outstanding last year, it's further indication that this council is putting our local people first and remaining focused on providing high quality care and support to residents of all ages.

"This positive rating is yet another step forward as we continue on our journey of improving services for residents.

"We will, however, not rest on our laurels. My fellow councillors and I are already working alongside our Senior Adult Social Care team to comprehensively review this report, and we will use the findings from it to continue learning, improving and innovating for the benefit for everyone who calls Thurrock home." 

The full report can be read via this link.