Adult care services provided by Lincolnshire County Council still ‘require improvement’ – according to the healthcare watchdog - but it recognised improvements have been made.

The authority says it is “ambitious for adult care services” in the county – and that early successes from its improvement programme “are already making a difference”.

The Care Quality Commission (CQC) published its latest assessment of the Council’s adult care services on August 13.

The overall rating was ‘requires improvement’ – but the authority only just missed out on an overall ‘good’ rating by a slim margin.

placeholder image — Lincolnshire County Council.

An LCC spokesperson said: “They looked at nine areas to evaluate how well we are meeting our adult care responsibilities, with their report highlighting that we have solid foundations in place. It does identify some areas where we could do better, but it recognises we are already taking action to improve things. This is our first full assessment since inspection of local authorities by the CQC was introduced in 2024.”

LCC was rated ‘good’ in the following four areas:

• Equity in experience and outcomes

• Partnerships and communities

• Safeguarding

• Learning, improvement and innovation

The following five ‘require improvement’:

• Assessing needs

• Supporting people to lead healthier lives

• Care provision, integration and continuity

• Safe pathways, systems and transitions

• Governance, management and sustainability

Coun Steve Clegg, executive councillor for adult care and health, said: “When our new administration came into the council, it was clear there was significant scope for improvement within our adult care services. We weren’t prepared to sit back and allow things to continue as they had done previously – we wanted to be much more ambitious. We strengthened the council's senior leadership arrangements, bringing fresh ideas and expertise into key roles and creating the confidence and freedom needed to drive innovation and deliver improvements quickly.

“We introduced the first ever wide-ranging Adult Social Care Strategy and reinvigorated our improvement programme, giving renewed momentum to work that is helping to modernise services, expand supported living opportunities and make better use of technology to support people to remain independent for longer.

“The CQC’s report underlines that change was needed and validates our decision to take immediate action. It also recognises our early successes and the progress we had already made prior to their visit.

“The report recognises our strong partnerships, our sound arrangements for safeguarding, and our commitment to learning and improving.

“I’m incredibly proud of the commitment, professionalism and compassion shown every day by our staff, providers, partners, volunteers and unpaid carers. Together, their hard work has been central to the improvements already achieved and will continue to drive further progress in the years ahead.

"Our ambition remains clear: to help people to live the lives they want to lead, ensuring they receive the right support, at the right time.”

Martin Samuels, executive director for adult care and community wellbeing, added: “We’re committed to continuous improvement, and, as the report highlights, even before the inspection, we had been taking action to address specific aspects of our services. These are often a result of the unique challenges associated with a large, rural county with an ageing population. The report highlights the impact of the action already taken and the strength of the steps we have in hand. Our focus is on maintaining that momentum and continuing to strengthen the quality, consistency and impact of our services.”