SHRC Report calls for Immediate Return of Withdrawn or Reduced Social Care Support

Scottish Human Rights Commission: calls for immediate return of social care support to address human rights concerns

Research published on 14-10-2020 by the Scottish Human Rights Commission shows that a considerable proportion of people who use social care support at home have experienced either a reduction or complete withdrawal of support during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Commission is deeply concerned about the current social care support available to people whose packages have been reduced or withdrawn, and calls for the Scottish Government and the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA) to jointly commit to the return of care and support at pre-pandemic levels, as a minimum.

The report sets out 24 recommendations for action, including:

• The Scottish Government and the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA) should jointly commit to the return of care packages and support at pre-pandemic levels, as a minimum.
• The Scottish Government should immediately establish data collection mechanisms to monitor the nature and extent of the reductions and withdrawals of care packages.
• The Scottish Government and COSLA should develop an emergency decision making framework for social care which is grounded in rights-based principles of inclusion and participation in decision making, and transparency. This should also meet critical human rights standards.
• The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) should be incorporated into Scots law and therefore into policy design and delivery.

You can see a full copy of the report here: COVID-19, Social Care and Human Rights: Impact Monitoring Report

You can also see details of the Commissions Report and the further work of the SHRC here: SHRC Website 

For further information on organisations that can support people with human rights issues in Scotland, see the Commission’s booklet here: Help with Human Rights