A few posts back I talked about a friend of mine called “two soups” who died broke, broken and alone from alcohol-related causes. He passed away in his flat and was not found for some months. It was a terrible tragedy that could have been avoided if there had been more help and engagement in the community.
The truth is that often the most vulnerable people – the old, those with mental health problems, people with disabilities – have no one to turn to when help is needed most.
In my last blog, I talked about visiting a workshop in Shropshire dedicated to telling people about the CAF (or common assessment framework). It sounds like jargon and, of course, it is. But the CAF projects now being rolled out across pilot sites in England could make a huge difference to the lives of the most vulnerable members of society.
In short, CAF equals joining all services in the community, so they can unite and act together to help people. I’m starting to repeat myself, so I’ll let OLM’s Simon Powlson tell you why it’s an important step in the right direction for community services.
