iCG puts the vital role of social care in a song!

The Independent Care Group (iCG) has taken the unusual step of highlighting the vital care of older and vulnerable adults - in a song!

The iCG has just released a charity song called ‘Who Cares?’ proceeds of which will go to The Care Workers’ Charity.

The song has been co-written by iCG Marketing Executive Brian Johnson and performed by co-writer, Ivor Novello-nominated singer-songwriter Boo Hewerdine.

A video to accompany the song features footage taken at social care locations in North Yorkshire. The project has been sponsored by Hempsons, leading health, social care and charity lawyers. It is part of a long-term campaign by the iCG to promote and highlight social care and fight for improvement to the sector.

Mr Johnson said: “When I joined the iCG in 2023, I mentioned to iCG Chair Mike Padgham that I wrote songs in my spare time, he said, ‘We need a song for the care sector!’.

“Over the next few months, whilst getting to grips with my new job, I began to develop a lyric that tried to capture ‘moments’ from the lives of carers and the people they care for. The phrase ‘Who Cares?’ seemed to work well for the chorus, so slowly it came together.”

Armed with the words, Brian approached his friend Boo Hewerdine who has had songs recorded by kd lang, The Corrs and Eddi Reader and has been described by BBC Music as “one of Britain’s most consistently accomplished songwriters.” The pair had previously had some success with a collaboration that reached No.1 in an iTunes chart in New Zealand.

 “We began writing together during lockdown, just after Brian attended a songwriting workshop I’d run,” said Boo. “We seemed to click immediately and have written a number of songs together over the years - a couple of which appeared on my EP release ‘Singularities.’ One of the songs, ‘The Night is Young’ is now one of my favourites and I perfom it at nearly every gig.”

They worked together on ‘Who Cares?’ via Zoom.

“Boo is based in Glasgow and I’m in North Yorkshire,” added Brian. “Due to my day job and Boo’s various touring and recording commitments, we don’t get together in the same room that often, but we found remote collaboration works for us. We met up online as usual for ‘Who Cares?’ and within an hour Boo had come up with a beautiful melody to accompany the words.”

The basic track (Boo singing and playing guitar, with top session musician Euan Burton on double bass) was recorded last summer but Brian felt it needed an extra element.

“We always felt more voices in the chorus would work well, so approached my friend David Wheale-Davey, musical director of The Skipton Choir, about arranging some choral parts for the song. He did a lovely job but as his choir were busy with preparations for various concerts, I had to look elsewhere for a group to perform on the recording.”

The answer came even closer to home. “I’d recently joined ‘Sing Out! South Craven,’ a new community choir based in my village of Glusburn. I asked if they’d like to get involved and despite only having formed a few months previously, they more than rose to the challenge.” The choir was recorded in their own rehearsal space at Glusburn Institute.

To accompany the song, Brian has directed and edited a video, shot by Silsden-based film-maker Dawn Feather at yorkshireedit.co.uk

The pair filmed sequences with staff and residents in care and nursing homes belonging to Mr Padgham’s Saint Cecilia’s Care Group and with ubu in Harrogate, who support vulnerable adults to live independently in their communities.

 “We’ve known each other for years but we’d never worked together,” said Brian. “Dawn is currently creating a beautiful documentary called ‘Joy ‘O Dance’, exploring how participation in dance and the arts positively impacts young people’s mental health, but she kindly broke off to help me on this project. I knew Dawn was really good with people and puts them at ease whilst filming, so we were able to get up close and personal and capture really special ‘day in the life’ moments and interactions between carers and their clients,” said Brian. “We were so privileged to be able to get access to their lives for a few hours and share the positive aspects of the care world and I think the images shot really support the song’s tone.”

The song, distributed by Horus Music, is available to purchase as a digital download at:  https://thecareworkerscharity.bandcamp.com/track/who-cares

Watch the video for the song here: https://www.independentcaregroup.co.uk

Thousands cheated out of decent quality of life, says ICG

THOUSANDS of people have been cheated out of a good quality of life due to years of inaction on social care reform, the Independent Care Group said today.

As the Health and Social Care Committee inquiry into the cost of inaction on social care began today, the provider organisation, The ICG says the lack of reform is a scandal that shames the country.

It is 14 years since the publication of the Commission on Funding of Care and Support’s ‘Fairer care funding’ report by Sir Andrew Dilnot. The committee, chaired by Layla Moran, is discussing the impact of inaction on social care in that period.

But the ICG says the period of inaction goes back over three decades and called for action to prevent even more people from going without the care they need.

ICG Chair Mike Padgham said: “Thousands of people being cheated out of the care they need to enjoy a good quality of life is the real cost of inaction on social care, which goes back three decades, not just 14 years.

“Whilst the Government has announced a commission on social care, we agree with Sir Andrew Dilnot when he told the committee today that it shouldn’t take three years for that commission to report. It needs strong political leadership to make it happen.

“We have now reached a point where there are 2m people living without the care they need and very little sign that things are going to get any better, with the current Government looking intent on kicking the issue down the road again.

“In 2025 that shames the country and shames politicians who have let it get so bad.”

The ICG is worried that the Government’s commission on social care will delay tackling the crisis.

Mr Padgham added: “The commission is welcome and as care providers with lots of expertise, knowledge and experience, we are keen to work with Baroness Casey and contribute to that process.

“But we are also very keen that it isn’t used as another delaying exercise and that action to improve social care happens in the meantime.

“We know the commission won’t report for the first time until at least mid-2026 then again in 2028 and who knows how long it will take to implement any recommendations. People going without care and providers who deliver care cannot wait that long for things to change.

“In the meantime, we call on the Government to take immediate action, invest the minimum £2bn extra needed to tackle short-term issues, pay social care staff properly and in line with their NHS colleagues and get on with creating a National Care Service that brings NHS and social care together under one roof.

“We can’t delay. After all, you don’t let rain fall into your home while you get a quote for a new roof.

“The Government is intent on reforming the NHS, but we cannot do that without fixing social care and we cannot wait until 2026 and beyond for that to begin.

“The warnings are very clear. The rise in Employer’s National Insurance Contributions and increases in the National Living and Minimum wages will add £2.8bn to providers’ costs and create real hardship this spring so we need action now to save the sector from further loss of provision.

“A survey of providers by the Care Provider Alliance found that 22% were planning to close their business; 73% will have to refuse new referrals from local authorities or the NHS; 57% planned to hand back some contracts and 64% feared having to make staff redundant.

“Years of inaction have taken a very heavy toll on people who need and rely upon social care and upon those who provide it. We cannot and must not wait any longer for reform to begin.”

Dismay over timetable for social care reform

The Independent Care Group today welcomed new measures to support social care but expressed its dismay over a timetable for greater reform.

Health Secretary Wes Streeting announced an extra £86m to support people with disabilities to continue living independently at home through the Disabled Facilities Grant.

He also announced plans to train social care workers to carry out more health checks and procedures to relieve pressure on the NHS. And there were measures aimed at improving access to new technology.

At the same time, Mr Streeting announced that the government will launch an independent commission into adult social care to be chaired by Baroness Louise Casey. In two phases, the commission will first report back in 2026 and report its longer-term recommendations in 2028.

ICG Chair Mike Padgham said: “We welcome the measures announced today, especially those that help people remain independent in their own homes.

“And we have argued for some time that social care staff should be able to undertake the kind of health checks and treatments that are highlighted today, as it makes sense for them to be done by staff who are working with people every day rather than waiting for a doctor or nurse to visit.

“My concern over this measure, is that if it isn’t supported by more funding to social care, it will heap further pressure on staff in a sector that is already straining under the pressure and working with 131,000 staff vacancies.

“After 30 years of neglect, social care sector is on its knees and my biggest disappointment from today’s announcement is the timetable for major reform.

“We have to wait until mid-2026 before first stage reporting from the commission and then no doubt it will take time to implement the reforms.

“Then the second phase reports in 2028, again a long way down the road and perilously close to another General Election. If the Government doesn’t get a second term, what happens to the recommendations?

“The sector has had enough of reports, we need to see urgent action. We might not have all the perfect solutions at hand, but we can’t have utopia and we need to make a start.  In the past 20 years we have had five health secretaries and 18 ministers and in that time, eight green papers, four white papers, two inquiries and numerous other reports.

“I can see why the Government would want cross-party consensus on this, but my fear is that it might just add further delays, which I suspect is what has happened in the past.

“We know what needs to be done and we want to see the Government be bold and get on with it. Social care providers have lots of knowledge and expertise and are ready to add our help in tackling the issues.

“We need to see a true National Care Service, with health and social care merged, better pay and conditions for social care staff – on a par with their NHS counterparts - and an immediate injection of cash into social care, with £2bn widely regarded as the minimum needed, with some of that switched from the NHS.

“We cannot fix the NHS without fixing social care first and we cannot wait until 2026 and beyond for that reform to begin.

“We already know that social care is struggling. A survey of providers by the Care Provider Alliance found that 22% were planning to close their business; 73% will have to refuse new referrals from local authorities or the NHS; 57% planned to hand back some contracts and 64% feared having to make staff redundant.

“The rise in Employer’s National Insurance Contributions and increases in the National Living and Minimum wages will create real hardship for care providers, so we need action now to save the sector from decimation and a loss of provision.

“Whilst today’s measures are welcome, they still expose a lack of urgency in reforming social care. We need reform so that we can start giving care to the 2m who currently can’t get it and so that social care can play its part in supporting the Government’s reform of the NHS, not least its desire to move care from hospital to community. That cannot happen while ever social care is in crisis and unable to deliver.”