Useful Links

www.carepoint.org.uk
The south east regional care portal - news, info and events

www.thelearningcampus.co.uk
A site for Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Milton Keynes with useful resources and tools to download.

www.pavauk.org.uk
Practitioner Alliance Against Abuse of Vulnerable Adults (a charity established to enhance protection of vulnerable adults)

www.lsc.gov.uk
The Learning and Skills Council, responsible for planning and funding vocational training.

www.businesslinksurrey.co.uk
Business Link Surrey offer guidance, support, advice, seminars etc to business' in Surrey.

www.surreycc.gov.uk
Surrey County Councils web site

www.dh.gov.uk
The Department of Health's site, some fascinating as well as important information.

www.topssengland.net/
Skills for Care - England web site - Latest info on the standards for induction/foundation/RMA etc.

www.gscc.org.uk
General Social Care Council - the organisation that will require all social care staff to register over the next few years. Includes the mandatory Codes of Practice.

www.carefinder.org.uk
A guide to all adult and residential care in East Sussex and Brighton & Hove.

www.scils.co.uk
The social care information and learning service - a subscription site that Surrey have joined on behalf of the sector. A password can be obtained from lisa.mack@surreycare.org.uk

www.ace.org.uk
Age Concern
Astral House 1268 London Road London SW16 4ER
Tel: 0208 765 7200 and 0208 679 8000
Age Concern supports all people over 50 in the UK, ensuring that they get the most from life. They provide services such as day care, general information, and campaign on issues like age discrimination and pensions, whilst working to influence public opinion and government policy about older people. The website includes also news, advice, campaign backgrounds, ideas for the elderly to stay active and a newsletter.

www.baaf.org.uk
The British Association for Adoption and Fostering has four main roles; standard setting including developing policies, reports and guidelines and providing training opportunities. They help raise public and professional awareness of issues affecting looked after children by writing leaflets and being active in the media; they also try to influence policy makers across the UK by lobbying and campaigning. They also help support child placement services by assisting agencies, offering training and organising National Adoption Week.

www.bild.org.uk
The British Institute of Learning Disabilities
(BILD) is committed to improving the quality of life for people in the UK with a learning disability by influencing policy makers and other decision makers and encouraging good practice among practitioners from a wide range of disciplines. They carry out research on topics of national interest, and disseminate the findings through conferences and workshops, publications, training courses and policy development. The site has details on all these plus event dates and recent news.

www.careandhealth.com
Care and Health is an information exchange for the social care sector in the UK. They work to facilitate and promote professional information and communication exchange within the social care and health sectors. Care and Health aims to do this by delivering solutions on practical management, recruitment, communications and information needs of social care and health professionals. Care and Health also publish CareandHealth Legal Update, a news journal containing information on the latest cases affecting the social care sector.

www.caringinfo.com
Caringinfo.com is an independent and not-for-profit site, designed to help older people in West Sussex, at every stage of the aging process, make choices about any support services or care needs they may have. It provides a variety of information resources to the general public and health and social care partners including a directory of care home providers throughout West Sussex with a listing of those with vacancies. There is advice on staying independent within your home and community, and advice and links on dealing with confusion and mental health. Links to other relevant care websites are also included.

www.careaware.co.uk
Care Aware is a public information and advisory service specialising in the issues relating to long term care for older people. Information about the care system may not be easy to gather and often, there will be a need for neutral and unbiased guidance. CareAware was established to fulfil the role of providing independent advice on matters of care and to do so from the perspective of the individual in need. Because CareAware does not have any links to Social Services or Government Departments, it is able to provide information and guidance which is neutral and without external influence. To provide this help CareAware offers a comprehensive range of information literature which is supported by a Helpline service to provide personal and individual assistance.

www.communitycare.co.uk
Community Care is a social care information provider. It provides daily news, analysis, opinions, sharing of best practice and ideas, and original research with opportunities for participation. It is an interactive medium for users, providing tools to aid care professionals in their jobs, such as legal updates, a 'directory' and an article search. The website advertises job opportunities for candidates in every specialist area with a comprehensive list every week.

www.csci.org.uk
The Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) is the single, independent inspectorate for all social care services in England. It works on a local level, at a national level, and across all sectors. CSCI registers the priva te and voluntary care services that are required to meet national standards; inspects, assesses and reviews all care services and children's boarding schools, residential special schools, etc and publishes the inspection reports. It also deals with complaints about care service providers. All this information is available on the website along with links and general advice.

www.dfes.gov.uk
The Department for Education and Skills was established with the purpose of creating opportunity, releasing potential and achievement for all. Their aim is to give children a good start in education, enable young people to equip themselves with life and work skills, and encourage adults to achieve their full potential through learning. It is a large website but the Public Enquiry Unit helps you find specific information about education and skills matters.

www.elderabuse.org.uk
Action on Elder Abuse is a national organisation that operates across all of the United Kingdom. It also provides support within Ireland. Its aim is to prevent abuse in old age by raising awareness, education, promoting research and the collection and dissemination of information. The website provides national information, including a helpline and an advice service on abuse issues. There is also guidance for the prevention of, and action on, the abuse of older people.

www.eures-jobs.com
European Job centre plus web site to help employers and applicants seeking work in the UK.

www.workskillsplus.co.uk
Workskillsplus is a partnership between the Surrey Learning and Skills Council, Nextstep, Business Link Surrey and Surrey Chambers of Commerce. This site is useful if you are looking for staff training or management development in Surrey and South East.

www.surreyeconomicpartnership.org
A partnership between business, the public and voluntary sector which:

Brings together the principal organisations in economic development to exchange views and progress in addressing the issues facing the Surrey Economy.
Takes collective action to engage business and enable business to influence public sector agenda and strategies.
Takes more focused and carefully prepared action in a small number of chosen areas.

www.hmso.gov.uk/acts
Her Majesty's Stationery Office (HMSO) is headed by the Controller and operates as part of the Cabinet Office under the ministerial control of the Minister for the Cabinet Office. HMSO delivers a wide range of services to the public, information industry and government relating to access and re-use of government information.

www.kingsfund.org.uk/updates
The King's Fund, 11 - 13 Cavendish Square, London W1G 0AN
Tel: 020 7307 2400 Fax: 020 7307 2801
Is an independent charitable foundation working for better health, especially in London. They carry out research, policy analysis and development activities. A new web site has recently been launched providing a wide range of online services, including publication sales, conference venue booking, leadership development enquiries and information and library services; an extensive health topics section, pulling together all of the King's Fund's research, analysis, funding projects and comment by issue; a new online news centre containing briefings, news releases and feature articles by topic.

www.lifelonglearning.co.uk
Lifelong Learning offers information for those wishing to gain any new skills. The website provides a good starting point for all learners, providing information about a range of opportunities, from community learning projects to basic qualifications and work-based skills. It gives links to other sites which provide information on how to obtain the qualifications, how to finance them, and many other details. There are qualification targets and advice on how to achieve them and also a news section.

www.mentalhealth.org.uk
The Mental Health Foundation is one of the leading UK charities working in mental health and learning disabilities. It develops its own research and community projects, aiming to improve the support available for people with mental health problems and people with learning disabilities. The website has information on the foundation's publications and projects, mental health in the media, getting help for mental health problems and many other relevant issues and links.

www.ncvo-vol.org.uk
The National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO) is the umbrella body for the voluntary sector in England. They work to support the voluntary sector and represent the views of the voluntary sector to policy makers and government and consults with the sector to inform policy positions on issues generic to the sector. NCVO offers a freephone HelpDesk, policy briefings, information networks, events and a wide range of publications, including good practice information on everything from trusteeship to employment law and also the opportunity to become a member.

www.qca.org.uk
The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) is a non-departmental public body, sponsored by the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) which builds the education and training framework designed by the government. QCA maintains and develops the national curriculum and associated assessments, tests and examinations; and accredits and monitors qualifications in colleges and at work. It offers information for anyone involved in learning, teaching or supporting learners.

www.socialworkcareers.co.uk
Social Work Careers provides information on careers in social work to help you decide if social work is the career for you, or for people you're advising. It has links and information for people interested in career opportunities within social care. This includes information on degree level qualifications needed to practise as a social worker. There are also current and relevant news topics to view. This website is for issues and matters relating to social work in England but there are links to other parts of the UK.

www.valuingpeople.gov.uk
Valuing People is the government's plan for making the lives of people with learning disabilities and their families better. The website has on it all the newsletters and papers that the Valuing People Support Team has brought out, as well as information links and help about different subjects, like Direct Payments, Housing, Health etc. There are links explaining what is happening in local areas and who the valuing People Regional Advisor and Partnership Board are.

www.scie-socialcareonline.org.uk
Welcome to Social Care Online where you can access the UK's most complete range of information and research on all aspects of social care - for free. With new content added daily by SCIE's experienced information professionals, you can find information about all aspects of social care, from fostering, to mental health, to human resources and much, much more.

www.caredirections.co.uk
Care Directions
100 Pirbright Road, London SW18 5NA
Tel/Fax: 020 8870 9686
E-mail: options@caredirections.co.uk
The internet's unique, comprehensive and user-friendly guide to care and the rights of the elderly. Register for a regular newsletter.

Counsel and Care for the Elderly
Twyman House, Lower Ground Floor, 16, Bonny Street, London NW1 9PG
Telephone 020 7485 1550 or 0208 679 8000.
Advice and fact sheets for the elderly.

www.housingcare.org
Elderly Accommodation Counsel
3rd Floor, 89 Albert Embankment London SE1 7TP
Telephone 020 7820 1343
e-mail: enquiries@e-a-c.demon.co.uk
Provides advice and assistance to elderly people seeking suitable accommodation.

www.helptheaged.org.uk
Help the Aged
207-221 Pentonville Road, London N1 9UZ
Tel: 020 7278 1114
Fax: 020 7278 1116
Email: info@helptheaged.org.uk
Free phone advice line 0808 800 6565.
A national charity dedicated to improving the quality of life for elderly people in need of help in the United Kingdom.

The Relatives and Residents Association
5 Tavistock Place, London, WC1H 9SN
Telephone 020 7916 6055
Practical advice and local groups for anyone with an elderly relative or friend receiving residential or nursing home care. Membership available to all relatives.

Social Security Benefits Agency
Freephone 0800 882200 or your local Social Security Benefits Office For information on benefits available to elderly people in care.

www.socialcareassociation.co.uk/
Social Care Association
The Professional Association for all those involved in Social Care.
Founded in 1949 they are the leading professional voice for all staff groups in the social care service. Services Include: Professional Support & Advice, Professional Development, 24-Hour Legal Help line, Accident & Assault Cover,

www.alzheimers.org.uk
The Alzheimer's Society

www.crb.gov.uk
Criminal Records Bureau

www.croner.co.uk
Employment Rights and Information

www.disabilityinfo.gov
Disability Discrimination

www.dss.gov.uk
Dept for Work and Pensions

www.dti.gov.uk
Dept of Trade and Industry

www.humanrights.gov.uk
Human Rights

www.nvqweb.com
Information and Support on NVQ's in Care.

www.tiger.gov.uk
Employment Rights and Information

www.ukhca.co.uk
United Kingdom Home Care Association

Summary of government websites:

www.legislation.hmso.gov.uk
www.hmso.gov.uk
www.employmenttribunals.gov.uk
www.homeoffice.gov.uk
www.odpm.gov.uk
www.womenandequalityunit.gov.uk
www.hse.gov.uk