Anna Coles

As a newcomer to Torbay, this is my first introduction to this annual summary.

In the first few months in my new role, I’ve been learning lots about adult social care in Torbay.

We support more than 2,700 people with a range of needs, many of them more complex than ever before. This means we need to be more innovative and creative in how we best support individuals to meet their outcomes than ever before.

We continue to encourage people to be healthy and stay healthy so that they can retain their independence for as long as possible.

We also need to be ready to adapt to new technologies, moving away from the conventional. I’m pleased that we now have 28 technology-enabled care champions to be ambassadors for using more innovative ways of support.

One thing that has struck me, and I hope it’s obvious in this local account summary, is how much – and how well – we at the council and the ICO work with our voluntary sector.

Their support is vital and we continue to build these strong relationships to deliver excellent care.

I’m pleased that our Adult Social Care Survey 2024 showed most people were satisfied with the care and support services they receive. We engage and collaborate with people regularly so we can understand their experiences and improve services.

This report features their stories, in words and in videos, and we focus on the voices of specific groups. These include those with autism, people receiving support for poor mental health and young people transitioning into adulthood.

This year has also seen us engage more with our workforce as we undergo our transformation programme to become a service fit for the future.

Adult social care would not be what it is without our staff. Their compassion for the people they care for really does come across in this report.

We know improvements can always be made and we do not shy away from them. By strengthening our relationships with service users, partners and our workers, we will be in a good position to meet those challenges head on.

Thank you to our fantastic social care teams, care providers and partners for the work that you do to support residents in Torbay to thrive and prosper.

Anna Coles
Director of Adults and Community Services, Torbay Council Torbay Council