News

MATT HANCOCK MP SUPPORTS CAMERAS IN CARE

Our Founder and Director Jayne Connery and our thousands of supporters rally support from care providers, care professionals and families for the mandatory use of safety monitoring in communal areas in all care homes and private rooms with consent

Read our response in the DAILY EXPRESS here

https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/1132927/care-home-abuse-CCTV-cameras-elderly-pensioners-campaign-crusade

Care Campaign for the Vulnerable is absolutely delighted to learn of Matthews Hancock's support for Cameras in Care Homes. For very many years we have called for such on behalf of traumatised families and residents, who have been desperate at times to understand how and why apparent failings in care - often resulting in injury and premature death of loved ones - were never fully explained. As a result, families carried guilt and grief for years after such events wondering if they in part were to blame as they had entrusted the care of their loved one to the nursing home.

Since we started our safety monitoring in communal areas in all care homes campaign, it has been eye-opening to say the least to learn that most care providers remain unwilling to use safety and monitoring technologies. This despite the availability of overwhelming evidence proving such systems increase standards of care, reduce the number of safeguarding incidences, allow preventative actions to be taken following recorded events and above all else provide transparency and reassurance for families of loved ones and good care staff

We, unfortunately, have many hundreds of distressing images sent to us by upset and grieving families. Their collective plea is ‘please don’t let this happen to other families and residents’ and therefore the news today of Health Secretary Hancocks support for cameras in care is nothing short of miraculous for those supporters of Care Campaign for the Vulnerable. It has seemed to many of us that over the last few years little value has been placed on older vulnerable people, indeed whilst an outcry from animal lovers resulted in the passing of legislation for CCTV in Abattoirs in 2018, the plight of elderly people in long term care institutions has remained largely ignored.

Former and recent abuse sites such as Winterbourne View (Bristol) Muckamore Abbey (Northern Ireland) Old Deanery (Essex) Oban House (Croydon) Vielstone and Gatooma (Devon) Clinton House (Cornwall) together with many many others should have served as an alarm call to alter the status quo. In truth little has changed and therefore safety and monitoring technologies must be mandated across all vulnerable persons care centres to ensure that we can know beyond any doubt, vulnerable people get the care and love they deserve in the final years of life.

It is now imperative that Matthew Hancock confirms to all care sector providers that safety and monitoring systems legislation will soon be on the statute books and that all future care organisations partnering with the NHS and Local Authorities will be required to have such systems in place as a contract requirement.

This is the least our vulnerable elderly deserve.