Access Social Care, working in partnership with University of York, have piloted a Letter Writing Clinic where law students support Access Social Care clients to write a letter to their local authority about their social care issues.

At Access Social Care, we are calling on all political parties to adequately fund social care so that older, disabled people, and carers get the high-quality support they have a right to.

Although the hearing has concluded for today, we are disappointed that due to late disclosure of further evidence by the government, further representations have been requested by the Tribunal panel before they are able to make a decision.

Two government departments attempt to overturn the decision of the information commissioner in “landmark court case” to avoid revealing social care data

Past Event

Please do come to this free event which is being run in person and hybrid - with many thanks to Garden Court Chamberswho will are kindly hosting this at their London office.

We are holding this at fairly short notice on Tuesday March 11th to give us an opportunity to consider the current MoJ fee consultation and what community care lawyers can do to contribute to that.

Our commitment to providing access to justice drives every aspect of our work. Recently we were delighted to resolve a pressing case brought to us by our member organisation Dimensions, who support people with learning disabilities and autism, to secure a client’s access to a lease car.

Featuring: Hannah Hewish (Legal Strategy Manager at Access Social Care) and Sarah O'Grady (Social Affairs Correspondent at the Daily Express).

This month, Access Social Care Founder and CEO Kari Gerstheimer is joined by Hannah Hewish and Sarah O'Grady for a special episode discussing the findings of our latest State of the Nation report.

The report is the result of an innovative data collaboration project working with nine different helpline organisations. It allows us to produce a comprehensive assessment of the complex issues facing our sector, and spotlights the emerging themes in social care advice provision.

In this episode, Hannah provides a behind-the-scenes glimpse at the making of the report and takes us through some of its key findings. We then hear from Sarah about some of the issues behind the numbers, based on her extensive experience reporting on social affairs.

Join us on October 19th for a free webinar exploring the incredible power of data collaboration and sharing the findings of our 2023 State of the Nation report.

Featuring: Dr Cecilia Anim CBE, Clinical Nurse and former President of the Royal College of Nursing

This month Kari is joined by Cecilia Anim for a special mini episode discussing overseas recruitment in the social care sector - a hot topic in the news right now.

They talk about government proposals to reduce immigration, staff shortages in the sector and the exploitation of international workers, as well as how to improve staff retention and why we must properly appreciate the vital work of those in the sector.

We are thrilled to announce that we have been named "Most Innovative Health & Social Care Advocates - England" in the Acquisition International Magazine Non-Profit Organisation Awards 2023! We’re so proud to be recognised in this way for our trailblazing work providing access to justice for those with social care needs.

For families and carers of a disabled person it is vitally important to make arrangements and properly plan for the future when you are no longer there to care for them. On Wednesday 22nd November 2023 we are hosting a webinar with specialist lawyer Philip Warford from Renaissance Legal. He will talk to parents and carers about how to plan for the future using carefully prepared Wills and Trusts.

Featuring: Alan Bird (Chief Technology Officer at Access Social Care), Victoria Albrecht (Founder and CEO at Springbok AI), Miriam Valencia (Head of Digital Content at Access Social Care) and Finbar Mulholland (Product Manager at Access Social Care).

This month, Kari is joined by Alan, Miriam and Finbar from Access Social Care and Victoria from Springbok AI to discuss our award-winning social care legal advice chatbot. They talk about why we decided to build a chatbot, the technology behind it, the journey so far, the challenges and potential of using AI, and what’s next for this exciting project. You can also hear about our new pilot programme, and how we’re working with other organisations to support more people and drive meaningful change. This episode is an illuminating insight into how digital innovation can be a powerful force for good.

Would you like to host our award-winning social care legal advice chatbot on your organisation’s website? By joining our pilot programme you can have early access to our product, allowing your clients and website visitors to easily access social care legal advice and generate personalised legal letters.

We are absolutely thrilled to announce that we have won in the "Best Digital Innovation" category at the Third Sector Business Charity Awards! This is in recognition of our ground-breaking work with Springbok AI on our free legal information chatbot.

Featuring: Shola Apena Rogers (Programme and Partnerships Manager at Black Thrive), Robert Horton (Culturally Appropriate Peer Advocate at Black Thrive), Jennine Bailey (Information and Advice Co-ordinator at Access Social Care), and Harry Clarke-Ezzidio (Policy Reporter at the New Statesman).

This month, Kari is joined by Shola and Robert from Black Thrive and Jennine from Access Social Care to discuss why racialised communities have worse social care outcomes than the general population, and what we can do about it. She also talks to New Statesman reporter Harry about health and social care inequalities, what happened to the government’s promise of “bold action”, and why it’s vital that we show proper appreciation for the social care workforce.

Featuring Kirstie Jones (Group People Director at Salutem Care) and Christoph Marr (Managing Director at Marr Procurement).

This month Kari is joined by Kirstie Jones and Christoph Marr to ask how we can solve the ever growing social care workforce crisis. Kirstie tells us about the new Salutem Care Competency Framework and what they are doing to retain staff and increase recruitment into the care sector. Christoph then shares how Marr Procurement are working with care sector organisations to make care work more attractive for care staff and encourage people into the sector.