Unprecedented challenges

Over the next 20 years, our health and social care system will face a period of unprecedented challenges, driven by significant increases in demand and a diminishing care workforce. Whilst Gloucestershire is not alone in facing these pressures, there are other local factors which will only exacerbate them further.

As a county we are a net importer of people who have or are likely to develop care needs. Older people choose to come and live here and other local authorities with capacity issues place people with care needs with services in Gloucestershire.

At the same time, the county is a net exporter of people of working age. Young adults leave Gloucestershire to go to university or seek employment and the proportion that return or move back into the area remains less that the number who leave.

Our care workforce is not growing sufficiently to meet the increasing demand, with the issues of recruitment and retention being felt at all levels across the sector. At the same time, the increasing complexity of some people’s care needs requires new specialist skills in the care workforce.

It is therefore essential that we work as one system to get people who need it, the right support, at the right time and in the right place.

We have identified 6 core challenges for our system to address over the next 20 years: 

1. Supporting independence
2. Appropriate housing
3. Increasing our community support offer
4. Focusing on rehabilitation, recovery and reablement
5. Creating flexible and sustainable long-term support
6. Working in partnership across the system

For each core challenge we have set out our proposed approach and how we plan to work together as a system to maximise the outcomes for the people of Gloucestershire.