Hampshire competition paves the way for innovative approaches to home care

This article originally appeared in the Guardian Social Care Network

Project shows that in a climate of austerity grassroots social care organisations have some of the best ideas to offer.

Remember when home care was a respected realm for multi-professional, community-based help and support? Sadly today, debate about home care has largely been overtaken by a focus on the problems besetting the service.

Workers report the burgeoning of zero hours contracts, and raise concerns about being tied to sub 15-minute visits and real pay that's less than the minimum wage - because time isn't allowed for travel, training or supervision. On the receiving end, disabled and older people talk of a succession of anonymous strangers coming through their door, arbitrary restrictions on the tasks they are allowed to do and the lack of respect, privacy, dignity and kindness in the way such work is carried out.

All this can be seen as a further expression of the political devaluing, under-funding and neglect of social care in England. Yet social care is also a policy area where some of the most innovative, grassroots developments appear to be taking place. Sometimes, of course, this is more a matter of rhetoric masking reality. But the emergence of disabled people's and user-led organisations and the increasing involvement of service users in professional training, planning, commissioning and practice development, are expressions of a will for something different - a true evocation of personalisation or "person-centred" support.

In November, a conference in Hampshire brought together commissioners and service users and their organisations, to share learning and take forward work on "user-driven" commissioning. Their aim was to share experience and learning from local initiatives in several counties - all of which highlighted the real gains of matching support with people's needs, by pooling direct payments and involving service users and grassroots providers. It highlighted the real value of a "corner shop" as opposed to a supermarket approach to the social care market - while highlighting that the present direction of travel seems, unfortunately, to be in the opposite direction.

In this same spirit of "co-production", Hampshire County Council and the disabled people's organisation Spectrum (formerly Southampton Centre for Independent Living), jointly organised a competition to develop innovative approaches to home care. Like many other health and welfare buzzwords of the early 21st century, "co-production" has been the victim of over-use, ill-definition and deliberate misuse. But here was an example of the idea as it is meant to be, involving real efforts to increase equality and co-operation between local services and local service users and their organisations.

Seven local user-led organisations responded to Hampshire's invitation to develop a proposal, each receiving some funding support and independent guidance and expertise to help them with their bid. This resulted in five fully worked-up bids being entered for the competition. The ideas ranged from a user-led training scheme, to a loyalty card and a 24/7 free information call-line. The proposals also included a smart technology linked to people's homes to provide virtual visits, non-intrusive advice and support - and where needed home visits, and a person-centred scheme prioritising user involvement and an enhanced choice of carers.

Judging was by a mixed team of disabled people, service users and staff from Hampshire social services. There were two joint winners: the first, developed by Disabled People's Voice Hampshire, is a web-based service to help people find reliable personal assistants and support staff who closely match their unique needs and preferences. The second, Local Treasures, offers a network of over 50-year-olds to provide home help to support older people in maintaining their independence and wellbeing. This offered employment opportunities to older people, as well as all kinds of practical support.

The joint winners will receive £4,000 each to take their ideas forward and roll them out.

Hampshire's home care competition suggests that a real route to innovation is from the "bottom-up". But it is also a timely reminder that the social care market offers much less than a level playing field to small user-led, community-based and black and minority ethnic organisations. Yet, because of their local knowledge, shared experience and closeness to people's issues, these grassroots groups have some of the best ideas and responses to offer.

By Peter Beresford.