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The government is to develop a strategy for older people that will set shared objectives across all central government departments, Community Care has learned, writes Derren Hayes.

It is likely the strategy, which community care minister Stephen Ladyman said could be in place by the end of the year, will outline a broad set of objectives which all departments and ministers will sign up to and promote.

The objectives will probably be on similar lines to those for children outlined in the recent green paper, and be based around insuring all polices on older people have well-being at their core and promote independence and choice in the services they receive.

Asked about the strategy at a conference on improving older people’s services in Kent this week, Ladyman said: “I didn’t know it was public knowledge.”

He said it wouldn’t be appropriate to comment on something that hadn’t been announced to parliament, but admitted that ministers were trying to ensure services were joined up at a national level.

“We are expecting you – councils and NHS bodies – to form partnerships more and more and work closer together. So the very least we in government should be doing should be making changes to make cross departmental working easier,“ he added.

Increasingly the view is being taken that improving older people’s health and care involves more than just the Department of Health and Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, Ladyman added.

However, he said discussions on integrating older people’s services across government departments were still ongoing, and that no decisions had yet been made on the final shape of the strategy.

*  For detailed reports from the conference see next week’s edition of Community Care.