The recommissioning of home care services

There are currently 1,900 plus people residing in Hull aged 18 and over who have a Home Care service that is commissioned by Hull City Council or Health. Healthwatch Kingston upon Hull undertook engagement to understand people’s experiences of these services and explore other aspects of their daily lives that are important to them.

The engagement was conducted in two parts. The first part was to engage with existing service users, to understand their experiences of the service currently, and to explore further what individuals would want from a strengths-based approach to service delivery. The second part of the engagement was targeted at people who have never used services but might give unbiased insights to help shape new service development.

The research was conducted primarily via telephone interviews. Engagement took place from March to May 2021. 63 service users responded to the engagement, as well as an additional 28 responses from members of the public who were not in receipt of a Home Care package.

The report finds a need for a more holistic outlook of the individual, going beyond assessing basic needs, with greater understanding of how more general needs occurring both during and between visits are identified and met. The report also identifies a need for regular reviews of service users’ individual needs, planning for the future, and ongoing adaptation to support maximum independence and self-empowerment where achievable.

That holistic outlook also needs to involve preventing people with additional support needs from living an unnecessarily housebound life, with planning to determine how this can be avoided. Important in this is thinking about how to support people to stay in touch with friends and family and continue to engage in hobbies.