A new chapter of leadership: driving improvement through evidence, partnership and co-production

A moment of challenge and opportunity

While the social care sector’s challenges are well known, I also see this as a moment of real possibility. With major programmes of social care, NHS and housing reform unfolding, there is potential to address long-standing pressures and drive coherent, sustainable change across systems that improves people’s lives. This will require us—as a sector and as organisations—to become more comfortable with change and to recognise that working differently is essential if we are to deliver consistently high‑quality outcomes for people who draw on care and support.

To drive meaningful change and more effective and efficient outcomes, we therefore need to support our teams to change day-to-day practice, and we need to ensure we are focused on the individuals’ needs, not the package of the care.  One example of that is our work with Bromley Council—digital transformation has enabled us to reduce care costs by nearly 30% and administrative time by around 20%, while achieving £2 million savings in its first year.

As I look ahead, I am excited by the opportunity to support a social care sector that is striving to become more consistent, more equitable and more confident in its own potential. My focus is on identifying opportunities for SCIE to continue to use our four offers, SCIE Consultancy, SCIE Training, SCIE Insights and SCIE Resources, to drive improvements and innovation and influence national policy and practice. At the same time, I will ensure that co-production with people with lived experience of social care continues to underpin and inform everything that we do.

One of the ways we can make the biggest contribution is by shaping the national conversation on social care reform. A clear example of this is our work on national standards of care. Building on the momentum from the launch of our report, ‘Towards a National Care Service: raising national standards of care’, we are now engaging with parliamentarians, senior sector leaders and the Casey Commission to drive this agenda forward so that people can rely on a consistent baseline of care regardless of where they live.

I am proud that we are also further expanding our focus on understanding and addressing inequity through our forthcoming Equity Evidence Hub, due to launch later this year, and through our annual Co-production Week in July, for which it is the theme. The hub will bring together evidence and lived experience to show where barriers exist and what can be done to reduce them, and will serve as a practical tool that organisations can use to understand inequity in their own contexts and take informed, targeted action. The aim is to highlight steps for creating a fairer system that responds to people’s varied circumstances.

At the same time, I recognise that national reform only makes a difference if it is felt locally. This requires system change and a focus on how we are working: relationships, trust, shared ownership, and learning—not just what we are doing. That’s why, alongside our work on driving change and reform at a national level, we will also continue supporting organisations to put this into practice. For example, we are testing our housing toolkits, the value of which was evidenced in statutory guidance issued last month, with Norfolk and Cumberland, influencing the development of their housing strategies. We deliver our support not only through direct commissions from local authorities, but also through a sector-led improvement for councils, which is funded by the Department of Health and Social Care and delivered in partnership with Partners in Care and Health and is free to local authorities to access. We work directly with local authorities, providers and partners to help them implement change on the ground—and to feel more confident and prepared for what lies ahead. In doing so, we help teams develop the skills, behaviours and cultures needed to work differently: to collaborate more, learn continuously, make use of evidence, and stay focused on what truly improves outcomes for people who draw on care and support.

As we move forward, this way of working—combining robust evidence, meaningful co-production and practical support for those delivering care—will remain central to how SCIE helps the sector navigate change.

The importance of partnership working

Strong partnership working within the social care sector—and across sectors such as health, housing, education and the voluntary and community sphere—will be essential to delivering meaningful and lasting improvement. I see every day that the challenges ahead are too complex for any single organisation to address alone. I also know from experience that the most effective solutions emerge when people and organisations come together with shared purpose and mutual accountability. This commitment to greater unity and shared purpose is driving SCIE’s involvement in initiatives such as the Time to Act Reform Board—a group of social care leaders committed to a shared Social Care Future vision.

A natural part of this collaborative approach is also our work with Think Local Act Personal (TLAP). Our combined expertise enables us to promote models of care that are rooted in people’s rights, aspirations and lived experience. Through this relationship, we together amplify the voices of people who draw on care and support and strengthen the sector’s commitment to co-production and person-centred practice. We also share learning that helps organisations embed these principles in meaningful, practical ways.

Strengthening these collaborations—and creating new ones—is a central priority for me as we move forward.

Looking ahead

SCIE is well-placed to meet the moment: outward-looking, innovative and ready to support a sector that is evolving at pace. As Interim Chief Executive, I want us to build on our strengths—our independence and impartiality, our commitment to evidence, and our belief in the power of collaboration—in ways that feel practical and grounded. Equally, I am keen for us to stretch ourselves, explore new approaches and respond creatively to the challenges ahead. Above all, I want our work to remain guided by the experiences and aspirations of people who draw on care and support.

This means working closely with people with lived experience of social care, and with the organisations working alongside them every day. Our work with The National Co-production Advisory Group and SCIE’s Co-production Steering Group will, therefore, continue to shape both our understanding of the system and our contribution to its future direction. I will also be spending time in care services to keep my thinking rooted in real experiences—what pressures people face, what support makes the biggest difference, and what good looks like when it is lived rather than described.

I am grateful to colleagues and partners who contribute to this work, and I look forward to working together to shape a better future for social care.

To find out more about how we can support you, contact us here or watch our film.