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The Coventry Experience: The Challenges of Modernising Social Care - a Coventry Perspective

Opening speech from John

John Bolton, Director of Community Services, hosted the Coventry Experience Conference, with the main aim of sharing the approach taken in Coventry to modernising Social Care, with other local authorities from across the UK.  This page provides an overview of the conference and its workshops/site visits.

Introduction

The Coventry Experience Conference, (held at the CoventryTechno Centre, Coventry University), brought together delegates from local authorities across the UK, the first of its kind, to be hosted by Coventry Community Services.  Delegates included, Directors, Heads of Service Areas, Councillors, Service Managers, Occupational Therapy Team Managers, and Commissioning Managers amongst others.

It was organised as a result of people from other authorities expressing a huge interest, and wanting to find out more, about what Coventry has done so far to modernise Social Care, what challenges they had faced, (and are still to face), and generally wanting to obtain information about the journey undertaken. 

The conference was divided into two parts, six workshops in the morning, followed by lunch, and then afternoon site visits, allowing delegates to see, in practice, the areas presented at the morning workshops.

The conference programme

Opening comments were received from:

  • Stella Manzie, Chief Executive, who put the social care agenda into perspective, from a corporate point of view
  • Councillor Hazel Noonan, former Cabinet Member for Community Services, who shared her approach to political leadership, including managing difficult changes
  • John Bolton, Director for Community Services, who shared the vision, direction, and how challenges have been faced in Coventry.  Please download a copy of John's presentation at the foot of this page.

Workshops

Six workshops took place, and delegates were allowed to choose which one they wished to attend in advance, as well as which site visit to go on.  The workshops included presentations, displays and an innovative board game for attendees. 

Note:  A copy of the full conference programme is available to download at the foot of this page.  Copies of all workshop presentations/additional information will be available by using the links above to access each workshop page.

Site visits

Following a break for lunch, delegates then took minibuses to their chosen site visit, which included:

  • Extra Care Housing
  • Physical and Sensory Impairment Team
  • Care Services Efficiency Delivery Team (CSED)
  • Learning Disability Services
  • Aylesford Lodge – Residential Intermediate Care
  • Gilbert Richards – Day Intermediate Care
  • Meeting the Enablement Occupational Therapists

Other useful documents

The Director was asked if he could provide a copy of the following documents.  These are also available to download at the foot of this page, and may prove useful to attendees/non-attendees of the conference:

  • Dilemmas in Social Care
  • Prevention in Social Care
  • Re-discovering Social Work

To obtain more information about the conference, please use the contact details below.

Contact details:

Karen Everitt
Administration Manager
Policy and Business
Room 138, Civic Centre 1
Little Park Street
Coventry, CV1 5RS
Tel. 024 7683 3497
e-mail. karen.everitt@coventry.gov.uk

Downloadable documents