See answers to previous information requests

My request relates to Adult Social Care policies, training, and practice standards. I have kept the request focused and specific in order to minimise the burden of compliance. All four requests below concern information that I would expect to be held centrally by the Adult Social Care directorate and readily accessible.

1. Epilepsy and SUDEP Training — Requirements and Completion
Please provide the following in relation to Adult Social Care staff:
a) Whether training in epilepsy awareness and emergency response is mandatory or recommended for social workers and care coordinators;
b) Whether training in SUDEP (Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy) risk management is mandatory or recommended;
c) The current completion rate for any such training, anonymised by role rather than by individual name;
d) The date on which any such training was introduced or last updated.

This training isn't currently provided.

2. Complaints Policy — Independence and Co-authorship
Please provide a copy of the council's current complaints policy for Adult Social Care, and specifically:
a) The required response times at Stage 1 and Stage 2 of the complaints process;
This is available here: https://www.wokingham.gov.uk/complaints/adult-social-care-complaints
Only one formal response required, 20 working days.

b) Whether a social worker or officer who is the subject of a formal complaint is permitted to contribute to, review, or approve the response to that complaint at any stage;
All formal complaint responses are independently investigated by the Adult Social Care Customer Relations Manager. As part of that investigation, the Adult Social Care Customer Relations Manager may seek information and clarification from any social workers or officers involved in the matters raised, including those who are the subject of the complaint. Where relevant, this information may be considered and referenced within the complaint response. However, responsibility for reviewing the evidence, reaching a decision, and approving the final response rests solely with the Adult Social Care Customer Relations Manager.

c) What independent oversight or sign-off is required before a Stage 2 response is issued;
Not applicable.

d) The actual average response times at Stage 1 and Stage 2 in each of the last three years.
2023: 16 working days
2024: 19 working days
2025: 25 working days

The data also captures any extensions applied to complaint timescales where additional time to complete enquiries was required, with any such extensions being communicated to the complainant.

3. Accessible Communication — Policy for Adults with Aphasia
Please provide all current policies, guidance, and training materials relating to communication with adults who have aphasia or other acquired communication impairments, and specifically:
a) Whether the council has a documented accessible communication protocol or framework for use with adults who have aphasia;
The Sensory Needs Service provides specialist support to adults with sight loss, hearing loss, deafness and dual sensory loss. While the service works closely with Adult Social Care colleagues and provides specialist advice where communication needs relate to sensory impairment, aphasia and other acquired communication impairments are not currently covered by a standalone Sensory Needs Service policy or protocol.

The Council does not currently hold a standalone documented accessible communication protocol or framework specifically for use with adults who have aphasia. ASC practitioners are expected to identify and record a person's communication needs as part of assessment, care and support planning, review, mental capacity considerations, safeguarding activity and day-to-day casework. This includes considering whether the person needs information in an alternative format, additional time, support from a representative or advocate, communication aids, specialist interpretation, or input from relevant health professionals such as Speech and Language Therapy where appropriate.

The Council's broader ASC practice approach is person-centred and strengths-based, and staff are expected to make reasonable adjustments in line with equality and accessibility duties. However, this is not set out in a dedicated aphasia-specific protocol.

b) What training, if any, is provided to Adult Social Care social workers on communicating with adults who have aphasia;
There is currently no specific mandatory ASC training course held by the Sensory Needs Service or ASC that is solely focused on communicating with adults who have aphasia. ASC staff have access to wider training and practice development opportunities relevant to inclusive communication, person-centred practice, mental capacity, advocacy, safeguarding, autism, learning disability, sensory needs, and the language used in ASC practice. These courses support practitioners to consider communication needs and reasonable adjustments in their work, but they are not aphasia-specific training materials. Where an individual has aphasia or another acquired communication impairment, practitioners would be expected to seek case-specific advice from appropriate professionals, including health colleagues and Speech and Language Therapy services where this is relevant to the person's needs.

c) Whether that training is mandatory or recommended, and the current completion rate anonymised by role.
As there is no aphasia-specific ASC training course currently identified as mandatory, the Council does not hold a completion rate for mandatory aphasia communication training by role. Wider ASC learning relating to communication, mental capacity, advocacy, safeguarding, autism, learning disability, sensory needs and person-centred practice may be mandatory or recommended depending on the role, service area and professional requirements. However, completion data for those broader courses would not accurately answer this request because the courses are not specifically about communication with adults who have aphasia. Accordingly, the Council confirms that it does not hold a current anonymised completion rate dataset by role for aphasia specific communication training.

In summary, the Council does not currently hold a standalone documented accessible communication protocol or framework specifically for adults with aphasia, and there is no mandatory aphasia-specific communication training course for ASC practitioners from which a completion rate by role can be reported. ASC staff are nevertheless expected to identify communication needs, make reasonable adjustments, involve advocates or representatives where required, and seek specialist advice from relevant professionals where this is necessary to support effective involvement, assessment and decision-making.

4. Care Plan Co-production — Policy and Timeliness
Please provide the council's current policy on care plan co-production and completion timescales under the Care Act 2014, specifically:
a) Whether the council has a written policy on co-production of care plans with service users;
No such policy exists. Practice Standards are in place with a standard of 4 weeks for the creation of a support plan

b) The maximum timescale set by policy for completing and issuing a care plan following assessment;
See above.

c) The process where a service user disputes the content of a care plan;
There is a Complaints process in place. There is Self Directed Support appeals process for decisions relating to personal budget allocation.

d) The actual average time taken to complete care plans in each of the last three years.
FY 2023-24: 7 working days
FY 2024-25: 6 working days
FY 2025-26: 8 working days