ARC South London’s social care theme has produced a timely new resource to support managers or volunteer co-ordinators of day centres. This is already being used by providers and making an impact. 'Helping adult day centres to ‘unlock lockdown'. The resource has two parts:

  • Part 1 covers some of the practicalities of re-opening, including infection control, communications, supporting service users, carers, staff and volunteers, some final things providers are likely to want to consider doing before re-opening; with a user-friendly, practical scenario-planning tool. 
  • Part 2 aims to prompt reflection on what has happened during lockdown, the process of moving forwards and any learning that will be helpful for the future. Individual sections can be completed according to the stage a service is in.

These resources were produced with the help of local providers and PPI involvement. The team subsequently worked with the Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) to produce their Department of Health and Social Care commissioned guidance ‘Delivering safe, face-to-face adult day care’  which draws on our research.

Feedback:

The guidance has been widely shared with a range of local and national networks and included in newsletters/bulletins and related social media including: NHS Evidence Search, NICE and Social Care Online (SCIE) and disseminated via a range of individual organisational websites. We have also received positive feedback from statutory bodies, voluntary sector day centres, private/for-profit day centres, local authorities, the NHS and the House of Commons.

‘We’ve been waiting for something like this!’ (Quality Improvement Manager, Clinical Networks – Dementia & Older People's Mental Health, NHS England and NHS Improvement (NE and Yorkshire)

‘Finally, we have a resource we can refer to … We will be using it to guide us at our upcoming planning meeting. Really, well done, it is excellent.’ (Deptford Methodist Mission Day Centre)

‘Many thanks for this. The Helping adult day centres to ‘unlock lockdown’ will be particularly useful as this is something we have been asked about a fair bit.’ (House of Commons Library)

‘This guide is exceptionally useful, as there is so little (almost nothing) out there that seems to give any clear steer at this stage.’ (Age Exchange)