New care trust to be launched in London

A south east London care trust integrating health and social
services for older and disabled people will be launched in October,
increasing the number of care trusts to eight, writes
Amy Taylor.

The care trust in Bexley will include all the work of Bexley
primary care trust and the assessment work of Bexley social
services for older people and disabled adults.

Director of social services and the care trust’s chief
social services officer, Simon Leftley, said the trust had been
established to provide people with a single assessment process,
giving them one point of access to health and social services.

“A lot of elderly people know where their GP is, they often
don’t know where their social services offices are,” he said.

Bexley was one of 12 pilot care trusts, from an original
department of health list of 16, that decided against an April 2002
launch date. Three other care trusts in Essex, Sandwell and
Sheffield have since launched joining the original four care trusts
in Camden and Islington, Bradford, Northumberland and Manchester.
Leftley put Bexley’s delay down to wanting to ensure they had
done enough preparation.