We need your input on the NHS 10 Year Health Plan England only

All about caring
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We have a huge opportunity to shape the Government’s 10 Year Health Plan for the NHS. We must ensure that the Government hears unpaid carers loud and clear as they begin planning to build an NHS fit for the future.

We have welcomed the public engagement exercise that has been launched by the Government to inform the development of a new 10 Year Health Plan for the NHS. Members of the public, as well as NHS staff and experts are being urged to share their experiences, views and ideas for fixing the NHS.

We want unpaid carers to be at the heart of that plan and have a strong voice in shaping the future of the NHS. This is vital to ensure that:

• the NHS 10 Year Health Plan clearly recognises the role of unpaid carers
• there are specific measures which would better recognise and support unpaid carers, both in their caring role and as patients needing support themselves.

Join our engagement event for unpaid carers on the NHS 10 Year Health Plan - Carers UK event

Carers UK is holding an engagement event on Monday 18 November from 1.30-3pm online to enable members to share what you want to see from the NHS 10 Year Health Plan. We are delighted that we will be joined by Ed Moses, Director of Policy and Engagement on the NHS Plan at the Department for Health and Social Care, other DHSC senior staff, and Helen Walker, Chief Executive of Carers UK. This is a huge opportunity to engage directly and have your say to help shape the plan.

To register to attend the event, please click the link below. We will then send you joining instructions and a further reminder on the morning of the event. Please note that the event will be recorded but will only be used within Carers UK and will not be shared online or with other organisations. Meeting Registration - Zoom

Gathering carers’ voices and more evidence – fill in Carers UK’s survey

We are grateful to all of you who have generously responded to Carers UK’s surveys and your insights have helped us build a wealth of evidence, but there are some insights that we’re missing.

So that we are sure we are driving forward your priorities over the coming months, we have created a short survey so that you can share your specific views on what the future of the NHS should look like for unpaid carers.

We will use this evidence in the coming months to ensure carers’ voices are at the heart of the NHS reforms that are brought forward. Please fill out our survey before midnight on Sunday 24 November. Survey on unpaid carers’ views on the NHS

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Unfortunately I’ll be conducting redundancy interviews at a carers centre at that time. Irony.

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@CUK_Membership_Team, I have changed the title of the thread as the survey say England only and not the whole NHS of the UK which it should.

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Thank you team for posting this link. I have completed the survey and hope it helps.

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Have completed both surveys.

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I cannot attend the online event due to another appointment on that day.
I also tried to fill out the survey but it would not progess me beyond the part where it asks to choose statements about the NHS - I tried to create my own statement and maybe I am doing it incorrectly as it would not move onto the next page. I am usually ok at filling out surveys, so don’t know what went wrong

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Thank you @Michael_1910123

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@CUK_Membership_Team, @Michael_CarersUK
I’ve completed both surveys and I have to say both make me feel really despondent

This feels like soundbites, goals, needs, wants, concerns - like a nebulous customer feedback form and NOT as the service providers-partners that we are. Many of us have LOTS of experiences of the NHS, hospital AND social services
Can we not reframe our ROLE??? especially if we equate to £162billion
valuing-carers-report (1).pdf (1.6 MB)

We’re not being asked for specific feedback, performance improvement plans, to improve the steps within the actual system so it can’t be applied,
We’re not at the adults table, we’re still seen as kids trying to get a booster seat to see what the adults are cooking up and they don’t like it when we we’re force fed what we don’t like, and choke on what they give us.
let us tell the government and NHS specifics of what’s not working

There is a LOT of in hospital actions we’ve all witnessed and experienced - Ask us to breakdown each part of from GP to ambulance to discharge over a >2 days stay and we can all provide specifics on ‘how to improve the system’!
Productivity culture, targets and admin tickboxes are NOT going to improve this system.

The NHS does note equate to the whole health system ALL providers, pharmacies, GPs, care organisations, hospices, charities, unpaid carers are not included - the FULL pathway is opaque.

Initial feedback:
The opacity of the government consultation

  • directs the answers to soundbites and plays to the lack of public awareness that social care is NOT part of the NHS, that community care is NOT part of the NHS.
  • Perhaps with the pharmacies taking action now (no home deliveries and reduced hours in January) there will be push back to REDO the consultation to encompass ALL aspects of healthcare, its interfaces & partnerships with the privately owned care organisations, GPs, and pharmacies and hospice charities and care charities.
  • If private business and charities sit at the table about their role then we need to be at THAT table we also provide a service that we have to fund ourselves with NO contractual obligation except emotional goodwill, guilt and love

The Carers UK questionnaire:

  • Thanks for putting spaces for lots of open responses.
  • I find it really hard to respond because it frames the context that unpaid carers are customers of the NHS - what do we want from it, how can we be better supported by it…when actually WE are the currently backbone of care in the community, the number of GPs and their services are declining, the pharmacies are overworked and under-supported, tax rises, national insurance increases and increases in national living wage means April 2025 many organisations face going out of business
  • As the backbone of care in the absence of social care (funding, people, proactive support instead of battling to get support) unpaid carers are service providers. As providers, we need to develop systems and processes that will help us, be PART of the development itself…
  • Q21 social care - If it’s not available and we’re not using it how can we comment on what concerns us?
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Precedence set in 2022 when Carers UK collaborated in this

Dame Philippa Russell DBE
QUOTE

As the NHS is now in its 75th year I remind
myself that I am a veteran carer of 58 years and
so have seen many changes and developments.
It is now so important to remind everyone of
the progress that has been made and that good
things are happening, despite the challenges.
As the NHS England London region ‘Carers
and Hospital Discharge’ learning event on July
12th 2022 and the subsequent follow up event on
the October 5th 2022 so amply demonstrated,
recognising carers as genuine partners in strategic
> design and co-produced delivery of healthcare
> can enrich and transform good outcomes for
> often very complex conditions.
> The London region events clearly demonstrates
> the possibilities and the value of carers’ ‘lived
> experience’ in supporting good recoveries
> for their relatives and ensuring confident
> and more rapid discharges to home and
> community. In recognising carers’ rights, roles
> and responsibilities, the Health and Care
> Act has formalised the spirit of co-production
> and personalised care with and not only for
> carers and those they support - and this resource
> pack illustrates how we can make best use of
> these new opportunities.
Introduction
The digital challenges on the day were skilfully
resolved and for me they are a reminder that
working together, we can resolve any of the
difficulties which inevitably arise at times of
change! I reflected that in 1948, at the birth of
the NHS, we had no technology but huge good
will and ambition to transform the health of the
UK and its citizens. ‘Carers’ were unrecognised
and hospitals were regarded as the pinnacle of
healthcare. Now we have technology, community,
hospitals and most importantly we have carers
themselves recognised, valued and key players
across the whole landscape of the NHS - July
12th and October 5th for me was part of the
celebrations around the new NHS and the shared
journey we are all on.

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Hi Victoria

Thanks for your feedback on the NHS and Carers UK surveys. I’ve passed this onto colleagues in our Policy and Public Affairs team who are coordinating our survey.

I hope you’re able to join the online engagement event we’re holding on Monday (1.30-3pm) to discuss the NHS 10-year plan.

Michael

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@Michael_CarersUK Thanks, I want to except it’s blood test day and wait for call for oncology consult appointment time…so it’s very unlikely - hence all my efforts to write my thoughts down.
I was pleased to see the expansion of the scope for feedback on the ‘change NHS’ site

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Thanks for sharing all your thoughts in such detail Victoria, and for completing both surveys. This is really helpful. Wishing you well for your appointment on Monday.

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