PROMOTING independence, supporting carers and keeping the pressure on MPs will be the top priorities for the new head of adult social care in Somerset.

Mel Lock has been appointed the interim director of adult services at Somerset County Council, following the departure of Stephen Chandler to Oxfordshire County Council.

Ms Lock – who described her appointment as “a really exciting opportunity” – will remain in the post until a permanent replacement for Mr Chandler can be found, with recruitment formally beginning in the autumn.

We sat down with Ms Lock at the council’s Taunton headquarters on Tuesday afternoon (August 27) to discuss her new role, the main challenges she faces in Somerset and how she will be spending her time.

Here are five things that we learnt from speaking to her:

The council will continue to promote people being independent for longer 

Both Mr Chandler and cabinet member David Huxtable have been driving forward the council’s ‘Promoting Independence’ agenda over the last few years.

Put simply, the council wants to make it possible for people to remain independent for as long as possible, living in their own homes and receiving care in their local communities rather than being admitted to a nursing home or taking up an acute hospital bed.

Ms Lock, who was closely involved with creating the strategy, said this drive towards independence would continue on her watch.

She said: “We want to make sure people can remain as independent as possible for as long as possible.

“We will always be thinking ‘what’s next?’ in terms of what we can do to help people in this way.”

Provision of community support must get more consistent across Somerset

The council has been using village agents and talking cafes to allow people in more rural or isolated areas to access the support they need.

These services are designed to direct people to support at the earliest opportunity, allowing funding to go to those who need it the most, and helps to combat loneliness and social isolation among rural residents.

Ms Lock said: “It’s working well in West Somerset and well in Taunton Deane, but we need to make sure those sorts of things are working consistently well across the county.”

More needs to be done to support carers and social workers

Having a steady supply of able and willing carers is indispensable – and like many parts of the UK, Somerset has struggled to find sufficient people who can meet growing demand.

Rather than relying on expensive agency staff (which puts pressure on already tight budgets), Ms Lock is keen to explore new ways of how to attract carers to Somerset – and how to keep them here once they arrive.

She said: “We need to think about how can we support carers more. If we did not have them doing their work, we would not be able to manage the demand.

“We find it difficult to recruit social workers, occupational therapists and other key posts – so we need to look at ways to attract people to Somerset.”

The council has also been working with Yeovil College and the University of Gloucestershire to offer a new social work qualification, in the absence of Somerset having its own university.

Funding is still a major issue – but it’s being very closely monitored

It’s been just under a year since the council had to set an emergency budget, cutting £15M over a two-year period in a bid to improve its precarious financial position.

The council keeps a tight rein on its spending as uncertainty continues, as a result of Brexit and the comprehensive spending review which will be published in the autumn.

Ms Lock said: “Money is limited and we know that demand is increasing – we cannot change that.

“We have robust spending checks in place and we are working hard to ensure our funding is used in the most effective way possible.”

Social care must stay on the national agenda

The two BBC Panorama programmes about social care in Somerset generated a considerable reaction – but there is still no indication from the government about when long-term reforms of social care will be coming forward.

Ms Lock will be spending a sizeable chunk of her time lobbying the government to bring forward its long-promised green paper on social care, working with other local authorities as part of a united front for change.

She said: “There’s going to have to be a balance. I need to make sure that I’m here, making sure that the day-to-day work and the developments within Somerset continue, but absolutely I need to be playing a part in that national picture.

“For me, unless we continue to keep social care up there – people talking about it and understanding what it means – we won’t get the changes that we require.”

The council has launched a petition on the UK Parliament website calling for a debate before Christmas on how the shortfall in social care funding can be addressed.

The petition requires 10,000 signatures to generate an official response from the government, and 100,000 signatures to be considered for debate in the House of Commons.

To sign the petition visit www.petition.parliament.uk/petitions/266020.