Council has ‘clear and ambitious’ vision for adult services after requires improvement CQC rating
North Northamptonshire Council (NNC) says it is committed to the continuous improvement of its adult social care services and that significant strides are being made in improving outcomes for residents.
The promise comes after the Care Quality Commission (CQC) published its first-ever assessment of how NNC delivers services for adults, as part of a new national programme assessing all local authorities in England.
The CQC is the independent regulator of health and adult social care in England. It works together with the public, health and social care systems and providers of care to protect people and to promote and improve the quality of care.
NNC received an overall rating of requires improvement with evidence showing some ‘shortfalls’ with a score of 50 per cent.
Cllr Eddie McDonald (Reform), NNC’s deputy leader and executive member for adult services, said: “We fully acknowledge the findings and remain committed to the continuous improvement of our adult social care services.
"It has been a year since the CQC commenced their assessment of North Northamptonshire and we are pleased that the findings have been published.
"We are confident that in the 12 months since CQC started their assessment our continuous improvement activity has delivered measurable progress and improved outcomes for our local community. We look forward to these improvements being reflected in future assessments.”
The council said it has a ‘clear and ambitious vision’ for adult social care and is committed to the delivery of its adult social care strategy, agreed by the council’s executive in February 2025. Improving outcomes for residents is also the purpose and focus of its new corporate plan which sets out the priorities that it will be focusing on over the next four years.
Local MP Gen Kitchen has responded to the report, saying her Wellingborough and Rushden constituents have raised concerns with her about the state of adult social care.
She said: “I’m very concerned about this although sadly, I can’t say I am surprised. My office has heard some very troubling cases from constituents who have needed the services of this council department.
"In one case, we almost had to beg the council to carry out an urgent assessment of a very vulnerable older lady whose family were crying out for help. “Delays to assessments, barriers to accessing care and inadequate care once in place, have all been raised with me.
"While I am pleased to see there is work from the council towards improving some of the issues, the fact that shortfalls have been identified across every area the CQC looked at, really isn’t good enough. The Reform leader of the council really must step in to ensure local people are kept safe.” The CQC report highlighted a number of positives but also identified areas for improvements, including some delays for assessments and reviews which meant people were waiting for support.
David Watts, executive director adults, health partnerships and housing for NNC, said: “We are pleased that the report reflects our own assessment of the areas that we are already focusing our improvement activity on.
"We have been able to demonstrate significant stabilisation of our teams, consistent improvement and greater involvement of people who use care and support since the council was created under five years ago in April 2021.
"The rating reflects that the council is progressing on its improvement journey, but that opportunities remain for us to continue to drive improvement of our services and better outcomes for our residents.
"We look forward to welcoming CQC back in the future where we will be able to demonstrate the delivery of our adult social care strategy and ongoing improvement programme.”