Study demands action on delays

Scottish councils should be asked to report to the executive on how they are tackling staffing issues that affect delivery of free personal care, says a report.

Half of Scottish local authorities surveyed in an evaluation into free personal care reported waiting lists for assessments to be completed, mainly because of a lack of staff.

Between the introduction of free personal care in July 2002 and March 2006, the number of ­people receiving personal care at home in Scotland rose by 74 per cent to more than 42,000.

The report recommends that councils should address concerns about delays in assessments by developing challenging local improvement targets for assessments.

It also says they should tell people waiting for services the reasons for the delays and indicate how long these could be.