Those of our readers who are residential child care workers will know about Tribal Group plc, the consultancy company which took over some of the functions carried out by the former NCERCC. The influence of Tribal and no doubt other large consultancy organisations seems to be growing upon the caring services as their tendrils spread across the territories of a number of government departments. Already the recipient of profitable government contracts related to our health, education and social care services, Tribal’s response to the coalition government’s new white paper for the National Health Service, “Equity and excellence : Liberating the NHS” is positive to the point of the congratulatory and carries a hint of the attitude that might be adopted by someone gleefully rubbing hands together at the prospect of more money running into his or her coffers.
“Equity and excellence : Liberating the NHS” includes plans to abolish primary care trusts and strategic health authorities and to put GPs into consortia in order to purchase care from hospitals and other health providers for their patients. This may or may not be an excellent idea but it is certain that private profit making companies like Tribal have seen it as an opportunity for making money. Kingsley Manning, Tribal’s business development director for health observes that the white paper “could amount to the denationalisation of healthcare services in England and is the most important redirection of the NHS in more than a generation” and perhaps Mr. Manning observes a lot of business development potential in it too. Tribal’s response to the white paper praises the coalition government’s vision as “compelling and logical” before reminding the government that “the practicalities of this vision still need finalising to ensure that local health systems do not suffer during the transitional period” and it goes on to give the government a little reminding nudge that Tribal is standing ready to take on this work. “Tribal’s work within the NHS," so the response goes, "revolves around implementing government initiatives such as healthcare planning and management to ensure that the NHS provides the best possible care to its patients.”
“Why”, we might ask, “can’t people who are already working within the NHS implement the government’s proposal ?” Well,Tribal’s Kingsley Manning has the answer. He tells us the “cornerstone of the government’s argument for such radical change is the NHS’s comparatively poor outcomes?” Can the government really be saying that the NHS is poor ? Furthermore who within the NHS will find it easy to work harmoniously with a private organisation which bases its approach to the NHS on this negative premise ?
Like other private consultancy companies Tribal is an unelected body which has set itself up it seems, as a source of expertise on all aspects of the caring, education and health professions. The work available to the consultants of Tribal and other companies seems to be increasing at a time when it is likely that less well paid workers who work directly in these fields will be losing their jobs. We ask again, “Who are the people who make up Tribal and companies like them ? What is their motive ? What exactly in detailed terms is their expertise and experience? If the consultants of these companies do have a great deal to offer the world of the helping professions and if they have experience of working with proven success within that world, why didn’t they remain in it as employees?
Our interest at goodenoughcaring is the nurture, care, health, development and education of children and their need for consistent and sincere and altruistic attention. There is nothing wrong with making money but should it be the principal motivating force if our main responsibility is to serve children (particularly the vulnerable ones) and their families ? Need we spend more money purchasing the services of private companies when we already have the personnel available to do it within our state provision for health, education and social care? (Originally posted at http://www.goodenoughcaring.com on July 19th, 2010).
References
Details of “Equity and Excellence in the NHS” accessed at http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/MediaCentre/Pressreleases/DH_117360 on July 16th.
Details of Tribal’s response to “Equity and Excellence in the NHS” accessed at
http://www.tribalgroup.com/Aboutus/Pages/newsTribalpublishesresponsetoGovernmentWhitePaperforhealth.aspx on July 16th 2010
Comments
The manager (name and address supplied) of a residential child care resource writes, "I agree with the sentiments of this article. We are at the coal face and the rewards for many staff in residential child care is an unfair salary for a fair day's work. Our rewards bear no comparison with the organisations who are trying to high jack social care on the back of a profit based ideology rather than meeting the care needs of individual children. I fear we will see more of this as this coalition government de-constructs the safety net for the more vulnerable members of society. All my work is now concentrated on dealing with the impending cuts and the drive by all the local authorities who have placed children with us to send as many young people home as they can whether or not the children are ready for this."
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