Councillor Nicolas Barlow, Cabinet Member for adult social care trying out the equipment with Chris Outhwaite, Assistant Team Manager at Dudley Council

Dudley Council has launched a new initiative, ‘Single-Handed Care,’ which aims to give Dudley Borough residents greater independence within the home by providing mobility aids.

Looking at new ways to support people who receive care, the project hopes to improve people’s overall well-being and independence by investing in new equipment, such as hoists and specialist sheets, making it easier for staff to provide care.

The equipment has helped numerous people maintain their mobility for longer, have greater control of their movement, increase their bone density and strengthen their muscles.

According to the Council, the equipment allows people to do more for themselves and has increased people’s confidence and independence.

Councillor Nicolas Barlow, Cabinet Member for adult social care, said: “Dignity in care is something we champion in the borough and being able to give people more independence in their own home is one of the key ways we can help achieve this.

“Anecdotally, people are already telling us that our new approach to their care is having a positive impact on their personal well-being.”

Nicolas added that the new equipment means that, in some cases, the support of just one carer is needed as opposed to two.

“This is great news for us as we know residents are happy because they feel more in control of their own lives and it means we can free up staff time to visit other residents and carry out other essential duties,” Nicolas continued.

The new initiative has received praise from other local authorities, which are looking to adopt a similar approach to care within their own areas.

Single-Handed Care is one of many measures introduced by the Council since the Government awarded it £13.9 million as part of the national £2 billion Improved Better Care Fund last year to tackle increasing pressures on health and social care services.

To be spent over the course of three years, the money awarded to the Council will be used to tackle some of the most pressing issues in health and adult social care.

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