Councils with a local disabled people’s organisation do better in care regulator inspections, research suggests

New analysis suggests that local authorities that have a disabled people’s organisation (DPO) working within their area perform better when inspected by the care regulator, particularly when it comes to promoting equality.

The analysis by Inclusion Barnet found that local authorities that have a DPO within their boundaries were more likely to achieve a “good” or “exceptional” score for equality when inspected by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

Inclusion Barnet has stressed that its findings are “tentative” as it examined only CQC’s assessments of London’s 33 borough councils, 23 of which have a DPO.

The strongest connection was between having a DPO and a better performance in reducing inequalities within their area, such as when they provide services and assess disabled people’s care needs.

But the analysis – carried out by Myriad Research – also found a tentative connection between councils with a DPO working within their boundaries and whether CQC rated that local authority “good” or “outstanding” when it came to their overall performance.

It found that 16 of 23 councils (70 per cent) with a DPO were rated good or outstanding, while only five out of 10 (50 per cent) without a DPO were rated good or outstanding.

But it stressed that the small sample meant that these findings were “uncertain” and did not establish that DPOs caused the stronger performance.

And it said that the analysis did not examine the size or resources of each DPO, the quality of its relationship with the local authority, or the extent to which it influenced services.

Caroline Collier (pictured), chief executive of Inclusion Barnet, said: “Deaf and disabled people’s organisations [DDPOs] have long argued that we are not simply consultees or critics of public services.

“We bring knowledge, relationships and expertise that can help local systems work better for disabled people.

“This research does not prove that DDPOs caused the stronger equity scores, and we would not claim that it does.

“But the difference between boroughs with and without a DDPO is striking and deserves serious attention.

“At a time when DDPOs around the country are struggling for sustainable funding, these findings challenge councils, government and the NHS to recognise that our organisations may be an important part of the infrastructure needed to create fairer public services.

“The next step must be to understand more about how DDPOs influence local decisions and services, and whether properly resourced involvement leads to better experiences and outcomes for disabled people.”

Tracey Lazard, chief executive of Inclusion London, which provided input into the research, said: “This welcome research from Inclusion Barnet points to what we already know in the DDPO sector and movement: that having a DDPO run by and for local disabled people is a vital asset – not just for disabled people using DDPO services and support but also for the wider community, including statutory bodies.

“DDPOs get the needs and issues of our community on the local agenda, raise awareness of the structural barriers we experience and can transform service planning and provision through offering and supporting co-production.”

Inclusion Barnet has now called for further research with a larger sample to examine how DPOs influence local authorities and whether their involvement can be shown to lead to changes in disabled people’s experiences and outcomes within council services.

Asked to comment on the report, a CQC spokesperson said: “It is always important to understand and appreciate the relationship between the voices of people, and high-quality, person-centred care.

“In our report Local Authority Assessments 2023–2026: Emerging Themes and Findings, one of the critical themes that stood out was prevention; the authorities that worked with the people in their communities to identify, plan for or resolve care issues before they occurred were often found to be driving success in other areas.

“It is important that authorities develop positive relationships with people whose voices are seldom heard to help address inequalities and improve care.

“We firmly believe good prevention strategies coupled with effective co-production that listens to and involves people with lived experience will lead to better care and outcomes.

“We hope local authorities, their partners and national decision-makers will use the insights from our report to drive the improvements that people relying on adult social care need.”