Join Edinburgh Support Workers Action Network, the Learning Disability Alliance and the Save our Homecare Services Campaign in calling on Edinburgh Council to;

- Stop blocking Direct Payments to social care service-users

- Guarantee funding at a reasonable level that allows service-user choice

- Stop the selling off of vital services to low cost private companies through its
competitive tendering process


See article below for more info;



SUPPORT WORKERS JOIN CALL FOR DEMONSTRATION THIS WEDNESDAY IN FIGHT TO DEFEND CARE SERVICES

Frontline staff from voluntary sector organisations get together with service users to fight competitive tendering process.

This Wednesday City of Edinburgh Health and Social Care Convener Paul Edie will host a lecture on the “Personalisation Agenda” which will address issues of choice and quality for social care service-users. Edinburgh ’s newly formed Support Worker’s Action Network (SWAN) will join service-users protesting outside asking “where is our choice?”



On Sunday 8th November Edinburgh's Support Worker's Action Network (SWAN) held its first open organising meeting as it begins its fight back against the budget cuts and competitive tendering it says threatens social care services in the Capital.

The group is being set up by frontline staff from voluntary sector organisations affected by the tendering of services in the fields of learning disability , mental health and physical disability. On the 27th October a paper was put before the City of Edinburgh 's Finance and Resources Committee recommending that contracts be awarded to eight companies leaving several voluntary sector organisations uncertain of their future while hundreds of service-users are set to be transferred to new service providers. Many people who currently use these services have hit out at the plans , pointing to the importance of long term relationships built up with their support staff.

The Council plans are not yet finalised. The decision was deferred to the full council meeting on 19th November before which groups such as SWAN and the Learning Disability Alliance along with service users say they will be campaigning and lobbying councillors to reverse the policy. A user of learning disability services stated in a letter to LibDem councillor Jim Lowrie;



“I want my staff to keep on working with me. Don’t make them go away. Leave the staff alone and let them get on with their work”.



There are fears that the process will lead to inadequate service delivery by private companies employing poorly trained , low paid staff. A support worker behind the new campaign group SWAN said

“the company that stands to win the biggest contract if this tendering process is allowed to go ahead is Choices Care. They pay their staff £6.05 per hour. There is no way you can retain good , dedicated , qualified staff over a long period of time if the role of support worker is devalued to barely above minimum wage. This would be disastrous for us and the people we support”.

Since the Council announced its plans to put services out to tender 176 service users have applied for a Direct Payment , which would enable them to choose their service provider , with many others set to do so. In response to this the council has refused to process Direct Payments until after the tendering process is complete. This decision has been heavily criticised by campaign groups and voluntary sector organisations and led to this protest being called.



A support worker from SWAN stated;

“Budget cuts are not new to us. In recent years the City of Edinburgh Council has been systematically cutting support to some of the capital's most vulnerable residents. Between 2004 and 2008 the 'Supporting People' budget was slashed by almost 20% from £44m to £36m. At the same time the local authority set about selling off 75% of its Homecare services mainly to low cost private companies. People have to wonder how the Council can manage to find £70m to bail out its arms length property companies yet cannot provide adequate support for our most vulnerable people”.



Last week at a meeting called by the Learning Disability Alliance , attended by over 150 people directly affected by the tendering process , a demonstration was planned for Wednesday 11th November. The protest will take place outside the City of Edinburgh Council annual social work lecture to be chaired by Paul Edie one of the driving forces behind the tendering process.

Protesters will be gathering from 4.30pm outside the City Chambers.



For more info email  swanedinburgh@yahoo.co.uk