Adult Social Care Strategy Review - The Life You Want to Lead

Thank you to everyone who helped shape the refreshed Adult Social Care Strategy. Your feedback has played a key role in its development.

You said - What we heard through the survey

We ran a public survey to understand whether the five priorities in the previous strategy still mattered. We received 262 responses, including 29 Easy Read responses.

People told us that the previous strategy’s priorities remain important. In particular, they said:

• People need help at the right time, without delays or difficulties getting through.
• Clear information is essential, especially about support and paying for care.
• Skilled, consistent care workers make a big difference.
• Unpaid carers need reliable support and breaks.
• Being able to live well at home matters to most people.
• We must focus on reducing inequalities, including digital exclusion, loneliness and barriers to accessing support.
• More support is needed for autistic people, people with learning disabilities and young people moving into adulthood.

How other feedback added to this

Alongside the survey, we spoke with people who use services, carers, staff, voluntary and community groups, NHS Sussex, and colleagues from districts and borough councils.

They reinforced the survey themes and highlighted the importance of:

• working together at community and neighbourhood level
  
• designing support with people, not for them, and
• Recognising the impact of people’s circumstances, including housing, on their social care needs; and
• taking action to reduce local inequalities.

Together, this gave us a strong, consistent picture of what matters most. The feedback we obtained has directly shaped the refreshed strategy.

In response, we:

• Confirmed that the previous strategy’s priorities remain relevant and important.
• Strengthened our focus on early, joined‑up support, so people don’t have to reach crisis point before getting help.
• Made clear commitments to providing plain‑English, accessible information, with non‑digital options.
• Reaffirmed the vital role of unpaid carers and the need for dependable support.
• Prioritised helping people to live safely and independently at home.
• Highlighted the need for a skilled, supported workforce.
• Built in a stronger focus on reducing inequalities and ensuring fair access to support.
• Committed to working with people, carers, statutory partners, the voluntary and community sector at a community and neighbourhood level.

This means the refreshed strategy is clear, realistic and firmly rooted in what people told us matters.

What happens next

• The strategy will be presented to Cabinet on 10 March 2026 for a final decision.
  Before this, it will be reviewed by the Health and Adult Social Care Scrutiny Committee (HASC) on 4 March 2026 (opens in new window), where councillors will examine the proposals.
• If approved, the strategy will guide our work. Progress will be monitored through our usual governance processes—the checks we use to make sure work is safe, effective and on track. These include updates to the Cabinet Member for Adults Services, Cabinet and HASC.

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