Islands' adult social care rated as good

The Care Quality Commission rated adult social care on the Isles of Scilly as 'good' following its recent inspection

Adult Social Care in the Isles of Scilly has been placed in the top 30% of all authorities inspected by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), a council meeting heard.

At a meeting of the Council of the Isles of Scilly on Tuesday, members heard its adult social care service score of 70 points compared "favourably" to the 65.5 point average score in this round of inspections.

The CQC rated the service as 'good' but did recommend some areas of improvement.

Interim director of adults' and children's services at the council, Dr Sue Ross, told the meeting the inspection results were "heartening".

Dr Ross said: "Discovering how well our Adult Social Care service inspection outcome compares on a national scale, despite some real challenges posed by our small size and geographical remoteness, has been extremely heartening.

"We now have a real opportunity to work on the few remaining areas which require improvement to be rated 'Good' or 'Outstanding,' and I think the CQC report will bring real focus to this effort, providing both the council and its partners across the health and social care system with a useful tool to drive and implement these improvements."

Lead member for adults and public health at the council, Avril Mumford, said she welcomed the report.

"It shines a light on how impressive the outcome of the CQC inspection is for our small, but complex authority.

"The level of commitment and care shown by staff in these services is humbling and I am delighted this has been recognised not only by CQC inspectors, but also by service users and their families."

Ms Mumford added she looked forward to further updates from the service as it takes action to address recommendations.