Sheffield patients could be given more say on the social care they receive

Dr Tim Gollins, head of localities in adult social care, and Lorraine Wood, head of communities, collaborated on a detailed report for elected members on how services currently work and what needs to be improved.

They said: “It’s about listening to people, and talking with people, to really understand who they are, what matters to them, what a good life looks like to them and to their family, and how we and other people can work with them to achieve this.

“Instead of focusing on what people struggle with, defining them by their needs and assessing them for services, we will look at people’s identity, their strengths, what they want to achieve, and what they, their family and community can, or could, do with the right motivation and support.”

A key part of their vision includes liberating workers from the ‘endless forms, referrals and bureaucracy’ by introducing a new IT system and increasing morale in teams.

Another key area is efficiency and improving communication with patients and staff. One way they aim to achieve this is through having three different ways people can access the system, through: hospitals, First Contact (a service for quick responses and advice) and locality teams (a service that is "actively connected" to people in the local community).

Several commitments were also made in the report. They stated: "We will reduce the number of people who return to us repeatedly because what we’ve put in place isn’t working, we haven’t listened or we haven’t done what is most effective. This wastes money and time.

"We will intervene early, when people are less likely to be in crisis, and when they are in crisis we will work quickly and effectively with people rather than leaving them waiting and letting the crisis build.

"We won't tolerate waiting lists - they are bad for the people we're working with, bad for us, and bad for our budget."

The plans will be discussed in a healthier communities and adult social care meeting on Wednesday, January 15.