Social care for adults in the county has been praised following an in-depth inspection that has placed our services among the best nationally.
A report has been published today (Thursday 30 October) by the Care Quality Commission after inspectors carried out a wide-ranging analysis of our care services, which included an onsite visit in June this year.
The inspectors awarded a good rating with an overall score of 81, which has currently placed us joint third in the country, alongside Wokingham Council, with more than half of all reports published for 153 local authorities in England.
The only local authorities to be awarded an outstanding rating so far are Camden along with Kensington and Chelsea, meaning we are currently the best-performing large countywide authority in the country.
The inspectors found that people in North Yorkshire were positive about the care and support they received from us, and that they were given the advice and information they needed to make the necessary choices about their social care.
Staff were also praised for working closely with people using social care and inspectors said the support provided is well-organised.
The high demand for social care of older people and working age adults in North Yorkshire was recognised by the inspectors, who also outlined a series of areas where improvements could be made.
Our executive member for health and adult services, Cllr Michael Harrison, said: “An inspection by the Care Quality Commission provides a very clear barometer for any local authority to see how well it is doing in providing such important services.
“To have received such an encouraging report is testament to all the hard work, determination and talent of our staff and partners in the community, including people who use care and support services, across England’s largest county.
“While there is much that is positive, there is still much more work to do as we face significant pressures both financially and in terms of people’s changing needs and expectations of social care.
“I would like to thank everyone involved for all that they do and would urge us all to use this report to drive forward further improvements in the future.”
A total of 9,955 people are supported through our adult social care services.
Maggie Donnelly, who lives near Ripon, has worked alongside us using her own experiences to help develop our adult social care services. She was also part of a group of people who provided evidence to inspectors involved in the Care Quality Commission report.
She said: “Listening to people is vital for the council to understand their experiences of adult social care and what matters most to them. I’m really pleased that the report from the Care Quality Commission highlights the many ways in which people can influence how care and support are shaped in North Yorkshire.
“Whether through individual voices or our forums, it’s great to see what we’ve achieved together working alongside the council. I’m looking forward to continuing with these conversations.”
The county has a population of approximately 627,629, according to the latest data from the Office of National Statistics. However, North Yorkshire has a higher than average older demographic with 25.67% of residents aged over 65, compared to 18.69% in England. It is often in the last three years of their lives that people draw on social care for support.
But there are also growing needs among working age adults with disabilities and mental health issues, and the report recognised the work that is under way to help support younger people too.
Plans are already underway to introduce care and support hubs to help people recover from a hospital stay and to work with those who have been diagnosed with dementia. We are also planning to step up our prevention work with voluntary sector organisations.
Our much-lauded Extra Care programme was also praised by the Care Quality Commission’s inspectors after a series of housing developments have been introduced to ensure older and disabled people remain living independently in more than 1,500 apartments in towns and villages across the county.
The Extra Care schemes offer both purpose-built housing as well as on-site care workers available around the clock and some developments also host facilities such as a library, a shop or a cafe.
With an increasingly diverse range of needs, our executive has approved a new 10-year programme which would see more Extra Care facilities being built alongside similar services for younger adults who may need care and support.
In the Care Quality Commission’s report, inspectors said issues remained around access to some mental health services and home care in rural areas, although pilot schemes were in place to help to address this.
They also highlighted that the introduction of the new occupational therapy assistant roles had reduced waiting times.
The inspectors recognised that some people used services outside of the county, but efforts were underway to expand local options. The report said that out-of-county care arrangements were monitored, and many people had achieved good outcomes.
Commenting on the overall approach to social care in the county, the inspectors said: “People said they were treated with respect and their rights were protected.
“They were involved in making decisions during assessments and reviews and their individual characteristics such as age, disability, or background were recognised and considered in their care plans.
“Many people were able to stay in their own homes for longer, through the care, support and equipment provided. They felt this helped them remain independent.”
We spent £251 million on adult social care in 2024/25, which was more than 43% of our total budget of nearly £577 million.
Each hour of social care in North Yorkshire’s rural communities can cost £5 more than in other parts of the country because of the travel costs and the longer journey times between adults who draw on care and support services.
We purchase more than two million hours of care for people in their homes each year.
Read the full Care Quality Commission report on our adult social care services.