Anger at low adult care rating
Council bosses are threatening legal action after adult social services were given a lukewarm one-star rating for the seventh year in a row.
Inspectors described most aspects of adult social care in the county as nothing more than "adequate" – to the fury of those running the service.
Lincolnshire County Council has now been slapped with a one out of three star rating every year since the current ratings system was introduced in 2002.
The authority's chiefs insist inspectors are ignoring clear improvements in services offered to elderly and disabled adults.
And they say they will stop co-operating with officials at the Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) when they next come to visit.
Tory council leader Martin Hill accused inspectors of setting out to give a bad report regardless of the facts.
"This report is a load of rubbish," he said.
"I am really amazed that an organisation like this can do something so unfair.
"If it was football, it would be bringing the game into disrepute."
The council says it had been working closely with CSCI all year to improve standards, and had been given no indication that things were wrong.
The Labour opposition said it would have been "nice" to achieve a higher rating.
But they say appealing the decision through the courts would waste taxpayers' cash.
Labour group leader Rob Parker said: "We should simply accept the decision of the inspector and concentrate on improving care."
For a full report see Wednesday's Lincolnshire Echo.
3 Comments
by anon, lincoln
Tuesday, December 02 2008, 11:30AM
“What's up? the truth hurt?social services are a joke-no wonder ofsted has got involved.”
by Support, Lincoln
Sunday, November 30 2008, 6:08PM
“Perhaps there would be less meetings if there was less need for local governemnt to meet meaningless and endless 'targets' which demand that social workers & colleagues spend the majority of their time doing paperwork & attending meetings to justify the minimal time they get to spend with real people who are in crisis. Put the blame where it should be, with central govenrment who have for years run down public social services then complain when mistakes are made! People dont go to social services because their lives are all nice and sorted, they come as a last resort when they no longer have any other option due to so. Maybe if every one of us started to care more about each other, our family, our neighbours, our friends instead of thinking the State should be responsible, we would all be better off! CSCI as an inspectorate body are no better! Im aware of several occassions when they have not performed their duties appropriatly, yet they are tasked with inspecting others.
Im glad the council are makng a stand, its way overdue.”
by Onlooker, Looking On
Wednesday, November 26 2008, 5:49PM
“All Social Services seem to do is have meetings about the meetings that they plan to have meetings about. 'Not within my work remit'- That is the usual excuse Social Services officers will try. You watch and see..”