By Peter Macleod, Chief Executive, Care Inspectorate

The Care Inspectorate’s new corporate plan sets out our priorities for 2019-2022, including our aim to be an organisation that identifies, develops and shares good practice. I would like to do whatever I can to help drive more improvement and innovation in social care. Our corporate plan is based on what we have learned from our scrutiny, assurance and improvement support work over the past few years. It has been informed through wide public consultation and through collaboration with staff, providers, health and social care partnerships, local and national partners and, most importantly, by people who experience care. I am equally keen to ensure that person-led care and public involvement continues to be central to our work, by taking account of people’s stories and personal experiences.

Many people in Scotland will experience health and social care services at some stage in their lives. I believe that everyone has the right to experience high-quality care that meets their rights, in line with the national Health and Social Care Standards; people should expect care that is compassionate, rights-based, respects choice and helps to realise their hopes and ambitions. It has been an important task for us to ensure the corporate plan reflects this.

Our new corporate plan highlights how, over the next few years, we will continue to transform our approach to scrutiny, assurance and improvement support. We will measure and evidence improvement in nine different areas and the plan sets out how our work will help improve the lives for people who experience care. Our information and intelligence will continue to help shape local and national policy. Our values will continue to drive all that we do; person-centred, fairness, respect, integrity, efficiency.

Through our core purpose of providing scrutiny, assurance and improvement support, our organisation is here to help others. We are here to support social care and social work, to make a contribution to our common purpose, to deliver world-class care in Scotland, based on rights and values. And to work towards an environment where every person, in every community, experiences high-quality care and support that is tailored to their rights, needs and wishes. In doing this, our staff will continue to play a crucial role in protecting people, and importantly, to provide assurance of this for those who care for them, including relatives, friends and other local community networks.

As a values-based and collaborative organisation, we have an ambitious strategic vision, whilst being responsive to wider societal challenges. We will also maintain a focus on personal outcomes and the things that matter most to people. Through our business transformation, and partnership and collaboration with others, we will strengthen our work with partners to improve outcomes for people who experience care.

We will do this by maintaining our commitment to our core purpose and statutory duties and delivering three high-level strategic outcomes set out in our corporate plan. Our three strategic outcomes are: for people to experience high quality care; for people to experience positive outcomes; and, for people’s rights to be respected. These outcomes support our vision and values and positively promote equality, improved health and wellbeing and social justice for all.

Through collaboration, the Care Inspectorate will continue to transform and develop new, innovative ways in which to carry out our duties of protecting people from harm, providing assurance and supporting improvement in care. Our agenda is being shaped by changes around us, so will must remain responsive to these. I look forward to working with you on our shared common purpose to improve quality of care and outcomes for people who experience care across our communities.

The Care Inspectorate’s corporate plan 2019 -2022 is available here.