Council social care job unsustainable, says report

Leaders at Barnsley Council say the role is too demanding and risks a decline in standards

A senior social care position at a South Yorkshire council will be split into two following concerns the role's current workload could become unsustainable.

Leaders at Barnsley Council have proposed removing the Service Director for Commissioning Social Care for Children and Adults role and replacing it with two roles – one for adult social care and one for children’s services.

A report to councillors said that if the role was not replaced, there was a risk performance and quality could decline.

The cost of the new roles, not revealed in the documents, would be funded from the council’s adult social care budget.

The Local Democracy Reporting Service said the decision to split the roles came after the council identified capacity issues that had slowed progress in areas such as commissioning and service improvement.

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