Care focus needed in national vision, report highlights

New UWS-Oxfam Partnership report proposes a blueprint for a National Outcome on care to add to the National Performance Framework, backed by leading organisations.

25/11/2021

News

CTA Image

Towards a Scotland That Cares

A new national focus on care, care workers and unpaid carers is required, a report by the University of the West of Scotland (UWS)-Oxfam Partnership has identified.

The release of the report ‘Towards a Scotland that cares – a new National Outcome on Care for the National Performance Framework’, coincides with National Carers Day; and warnings from leaders in Scotland’s care sector that it is facing a very difficult winter.

The report highlights that none of the 11 existing National Outcomes within Scotland’s National Performance Framework, which are focused on care, carers and care workers.

The report, created in consultation with care workers, unpaid carers and organisations which represent them, provides a detailed blueprint for the addition of a new National Outcome on care to ensure the Framework enables Scotland to “truly become a country that cares”.

Dr Hartwig Pautz, Senior Lecturer in Social Sciences at UWS, said: “Creating a new outcome dedicated to care would make Scotland one of the first countries to do this. Our report acknowledges that in recent years, significant and welcome policy has been developed in Scotland relating to diverse aspects of care; however, it highlights that an integrated National Outcome pulling everything together is urgently needed.

“By adopting a new National Outcome on care, bolstered by a robust monitoring framework, Scotland would be in a significantly improved position to measure whether it is valuing, and investing in its many care workers, unpaid carers and those experiencing care.”

Dr Chloe Maclean, Lecturer in Social Sciences at UWS, said: “The findings of this report are particularly important within the context of the Covid-19 crisis and how it made visible the problems concerning care in its unpaid and paid forms – care should therefore be an essential, core element of the National Performance Framework.”

Each of Scotland’s National Outcomes is underpinned by a series of performance indicators, to measure and drive spending and policy progress. The report suggests wording for a new Outcome on care, as well as a series of linked indicators to monitor success. The proposed Outcome covers the full spectrum of paid and unpaid care both for adults and children and for those with and without additional support needs.

In 2022, the National Performance Framework will start to undergo a comprehensive review process. The report authors, backed by Oxfam Scotland, Scottish Care, One Parent Families Scotland, the Scottish Women’s Budget Group, and Carers Scotland, argue that this is a major opportunity to anchor a new Outcome specifically on care in the Framework.

Jamie Livingstone, Head of Oxfam Scotland, said: “The current winter crisis facing Scotland’s care sector clearly requires immediate political intervention, but it also requires long-term vision, strategy and leadership if Ministers are to avoid simply lurching from one crisis to another while leaving those delivering care to continue to pay the price.

“The fundamental problem is that people in Scotland who care for others, whether paid or unpaid, and whether for adults or children, have been undervalued and under rewarded for far too long. For too many people that results in personal and economic costs, including poverty. This systemic undervaluing of care is inextricably linked to the fact that care work is overwhelmingly carried out by women.

“Scotland has a chance to show that it doesn’t need to be like this while setting a ground-breaking international example. This research places a blueprint for a new National Outcome to drive and track long-term change on the table. Now all that’s needed is the political vision to test and deliver it.”

Download Full report
Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.

View Privacy policy

Covering your tracks

You may not want other people to know that you’ve been searching for information or help from OPFS.

When browsing the internet whether on a mobile phone, tablet or computer, you leave a ‘history’ trail of pages and sites you’ve visited.

It’s impossible to completely avoid being tracked online but if you’re worried about someone knowing which sites you’ve been looking at, there are some things you can do to help cover your tracks.

If you’re using a laptop or desktop computer, try keeping another document or website open in a new tab or window while browsing. If someone comes in the room and you don’t want them to see what you’re looking at, you can quickly switch to another window or tab.

Deleting browsing history

You can delete the history of websites you’ve visited, but it’s important to know that if you delete your browsing history, someone else using the same device may notice.

If you share a tablet, mobile phone, laptop or computer with someone, they might notice that passwords or website addresses have disappeared from their history.

Find out how to remove your browsing history and other data from some of the most commonly used browsers:

Browsing in Private mode (incognito)

When browsing ‘incognito’, the internet browser won’t store cookies or record your browsing history on the computer, mobile or tablet.

This option is available on popular web browsers i.e. -

Toolbars

If you use a search toolbar in your web browser, remember that your searched items can be saved as part of your history. Find out how to delete your searched items from the following search engines: