Briefings and responses

We welcome the updated PPE guidance from Public Health England around social care settings, the first one focusing on care homes was issued last week. We now urgently need to see the updated guidance on domiciliary care. 

A rise in mental health problems in children and young people in recent years, exacerbated by COVID-19, has placed additional pressures on services and has hindered progress in reaching access targets. Targets set to improve the quality of care within inpatient settings, and to reduce their use in the long term, not been met.

We need to ensure that children and young people can also access high-quality mental health support outside of school. Many children and young people face challenges accessing support for their mental health. Patchy implementation of policies has also fuelled a postcode lottery in provision meaning that children and young people do not get a consistent offer of support.

Thank you for the opportunity to comment on the scope and effectiveness of section 75 arrangements. We have chosen not to answer all 30 specific questions included in the supporting document to the call for evidence. Instead, the high-level views of the LGA about the scope and effectiveness of section 75 financial flexibilities are summarised in paragraphs 5 – 19.

The Government published the Reforming the Mental Health Act white paper in August 2021, which sets out proposed changes to the Mental Health Act 1983 (MHA) and wider reforms of policy and practice around it. This briefing summarises the key points of the white paper with regard to people with a learning disability and autistic people.

Councils are determined to prevent and stop domestic abuse in all its forms. They play a vital role protecting older people from abuse through a range of front-line services, and have a statutory responsibility for safeguarding vulnerable adults with care and support needs.

Debate in light of the Government's decision to delay the implementation of the care cost cap.

This briefing gives the LGA’s views on the public health settlement for local authorities.

This settlement continues to leave local public health teams with limited resources to maintain essential services such as sexual health services and specialist community public health nursing

It is disappointing that the Public Health Grant allocations for 2023/24 have been published so late (15 March). With two weeks away from the start of the financial year and councils are only just being formally told how much money is being made available for councils to tackle costly public health issues such as sexual health, drug and alcohol services and stop smoking services.