A Care Quality Commission (CQC) report contained a number of criticisms of the way Newham Council was running the service, reports Nick Clark, Local Democracy Reporter

Adult social care in Newham “requires improvement” according to the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

The independent regulator delivered its verdict on Newham Council’s social care service in December.

Labour councillor Rita Chadha – responsible for social care – said it was “exceptionally important” that the council “own this report warts and all”.

However, she said the council was in “ongoing discussions” with the CQC about the rating, which was just one mark away from being “good”.

Cllr Chadha also said the CQC’s assessment process is not as “robust” as children’s social service regulator Ofsted. She said this was a “common view amongst many of my peers” in local government.

The CQC report found that people’s experiences with the council’s social care services were “mainly positive”.

However, it said there were “important areas where improvements are needed to ensure people receive timely support”.

It said some unpaid carers – those who look after friends or family – “weren’t always sure who to contact or what support was available to them”.

The report also said there wasn’t “sufficient care provision” for people with “complex learning disabilities, mental health needs or advanced dementia”.

The report also said that the numbers of people in Newham who said they were “satisfied with their care and support” and who “felt they had control over their daily lives” were both below the England average.

This was based on data taken from the government’s national adult social care survey for 2023 to 2024.

The CQC gave the council a grade of 62 out of 100, meaning it “requires improvement”. However a grade of 63 would have been enough to describe the service as “good”.

Councillors discussed the inspection report at a health and adult social care scrutiny commission meeting yesterday (Thursday 13th).

Labour councillor Ann Easter said she was “so disappointed to see the comments of the commission around the unpaid carers, who save us a huge amount of money every single day and who also know so much about their cared for person”.

Green Party councillor Danny Keeling said the council had a “good service here”. But they asked why the survey results were below the England average.

Fiona Connolly, the council’s director of adults and health said the council was “disappointed” with the CQC’s comments on unpaid carers. She said: “We value unpaid carers so much because of the work that they do and the support that they give their loved ones.

“There’s good support for carers but it’s about communication it’s about making sure carers are aware of what is available for them.”

Connolly also said the council’s survey scores were now “vastly different” to those recorded in 2023/24. She said the council would “continue to improve our ratings”.

She said the CQC had used data from 2023/24 as this was the most recently published data at the time of the inspection.

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