Lincolnshire Liberal Democrats Social Care Policy
Originally published by East Midlands Liberal Democrats
Only the Liberal Democrats have a vision where all people will be freed from poverty, ignorance and conformity. To achieve this we will empower people to make changes to their lives and not rely on the state to live their life for them.
We recognise the needs of those in society fall into four groups.
- 1) Those who only require signposting to appropriate services
- 2) Those with funding but lacking the social skills
- 3) Those with social skills but lacking the necessary funding
- 4) Those unable to function in society without high levels of support.
1) For those who have the social skills and are able to fund their activities we would sign post them to services to meet any needs they present. Such services would come from a range of providers.
2) For those who have the funding but lack the social skills they require to maintain their chosen lifestyle Liberal Democrats would develop:
- i. youth services to enable children and teenagers to gain social skills in a safe environment.
- ii. programmes to enable adults to support youth services on a voluntary basis. Both i) & ii) could be part funded by receipts from finds seized from criminal activity
- iii. educational services enabling them to benefit from the Pupil Premium, funds would be channelled to schools requiring support
- iv. adult education in the form of evening classes and community events making use of school facilities outside school hours
- v. services to enable people to gain the additional skills they require to address quality of life issues as a family
- vi. self help groups for those who are or feel vulnerable enabling them to support each other using both modern and traditional means, including safety nets for people who become ill or have long term illnesses
3) For those who have the social skills but lack funding we would assist them to access the funds they require. We would support:
- i) local charities to access funding whether from national organisations like Children in Need, National Lottery and Red Nose Day, to local organisations, for example Rotary or Lions.
- ii) people to gain the additional skills they need to help them maintain their quality of life
- iii) training programmes to enable people to gain the skills they require to allow them to find employment.
- iv) people in developing their budgetary skills
- v) the development of personal budgets enabling people to stay independent rather than becoming reliant on the state
4) For those unable to function in society without high levels of support. Liberal Democrats recognise the need for services from 24 hour care to regular interventions to maintain quality of life. We would provide access to:
- i) 24 hour care where it is deemed the most appropriate way of supporting a person, such care may be residential or in the person's own home
- ii) day care facilities funded by a variety of means, including personal budgets
- iii) respite facilities for carers
- iv) regular carers to support, monitor and assist people in staying in their own homes. Additionally we will ensure carers are provided with support and breaks. We will maximise the use of telehealth, telecare and other simple technologies to help people live in their own home.