Adult Social Care Market Position Statement

Analysis from the Adult Social Care Annual Survey 2022-2023 tells us what people are saying about the services they receive in Stockton-on-Tees:

• 67% people who use services were satisfied with their care and support
• 72% of people who use services said they find it easy to find information about services
• 84% of people who use services say that those services have made them feel safe and secure

Carers Survey 2021 to 2022

Analysis from the national Carers Survey 2021-2022 provides an overview of the types of issues carers are facing:

• in Stockton-on-Tees the highest proportion of people care for someone who is between the age of 75 and 84 with the second highest of people who are aged 85+.
• 46% of carers in Stockton-on-Tees care for someone with a physical disability; while
• 26% care for someone with a learning disability or difficulty and 27% care for someone with dementia.
• 79% of carers said the person they care for usually lives with them.
• 30% of carers have been looking after or helping the person they care for for more than 20 years and 20% over 5 years but less than 10 years.
• 84% of carers said the person they care for had not used any support or services allowing them to take a break from their caring role.
• 53% of carers felt they have some social interaction with people but not enough.

What carers in Stockton-on-Tees think about the service they receive:

• 46% of carers who had received support services felt satisfied or very satisfied with service they or the person they care for have received.
• 16% of carers were neither satisfied nor satisfied with the services they have received.
• 27% of carers said they had not received any support or services from Social Services in the last 12 months.
• People who care for someone usually have their own health issues, with 34% of carers having a long-standing illness.

Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council encourages carers to carry out a Carers Assessment via the 'Carers Hub' on Stockton Information Directory. The Carers Assessment can be completed online, and the assessment will be directed to the First Contact Team. The Carers Hub is an online service for all carers which brings together a range of information, advice and services for people who provide care and support to a friend or a family member in Stockton-on-Tees. It provides carers with 24-hour online access to relevant information and includes a self-assessment tool, a wellbeing wheel and a register for carers which together help carers to find information, advice and services of relevance to them in their caring role.

In 2016 Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council set up a provision for short breaks initially funded through the Learning Disability Development Fund. The council purchased an adapted mobility caravan at Primrose Valley in North Yorkshire, designed to enhance the current short break offer which the Council has in place. Given this was a relatively new project, the caravan initially provided additional short breaks provision for people within Stockton Borough Council's Learning Disability Social Care Team. Following the success, it was then opened up across all Adult Social Care Teams. 

The short breaks facility can be utilised via a direct payment or be funded by the person. The caravan can be accessed by a carer wishing to take a break from their caring role or by the person who is being cared for. The Council, Voluntary and Community Sector Enterprise (VCSE), and parent carer forum worked in partnership to ensure the project was successful. The Council works closely with a charity organisation who now manage the caravan.