Planning Local Authority Services for the Elderly

In the 1960s, planning the development of services for the elderly was a subject of considerable importance in Britain, both because existing services were known to be inadequate, and because the proportion of older people, especially of those over seventy-five, was expected to increase during the next thirty years. Originally published in 1969, this book describes how a sample of local authorities were planning their services for the elderly, how they estimated the need for services and the availability of resources, and how they linked their plans with those of other organisations. By providing a deeper understanding of the difficulties faced by local authority officials when trying to plan, and by suggesting a realistic approach to planning, the report made a valuable contribution towards putting the planning of services for the elderly on to a sound basis. It would have been helpful to all those concerned with the planning and administration of the social services at the time. At the same time the historical background and the insight given into the operation of local authority services should still be of interest to readers today.

Greta Sumner and Randall Smith

Foreword. List of Tables. Introduction. Part I: Background to the Study 1. Developments in National Policy since 1945 2. Services in 1965 - Residential Accommodation 3. Services in 1965 - Housing 4. Services in 1965 - Domiciliary Services Part II: Problems of Development - The Assessment of Needs 5. Residential Accommodation - Planning for Replacement 6. Residential Accommodation - The Nature of Current Need 7. Residential Accommodation - Estimating Future Need 8. Sheltered Housing 9. Local Authority Housing Programmes and Plans for the Elderly 10. Domiciliary Services - Planning to Improve Quality 11. Domiciliary Services - Planning for Unmet Needs 12. Domiciliary Services - The Ten-Year Plans Part III: Problems of Development - The Mobilization of Resources 13. Staffing - Recruitment Difficulties 14. Staffing - Employment Policies 15. Finance - Capital Projects 16. Finance - Revenue Expenditure 17. Finance - Housing for the Elderly 18. Sites 19. Architectural Services and Building Resources 20. Alternative Suppliers - Other Statutory Bodies 21. Alternative Suppliers - Voluntary Organisations 22. Alternative Suppliers - The Private Sector Part IV: Conclusions and Recommendations 23. Conclusions 24. A Possible Approach to Planning - Recommendations. Appendices. Selected Bibliography. Index.