David Warburton, the MP for Somerton and Frome, has been appointed co-chair to the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Adult Social Care in Westminster.

The APPG for Adult Social Care is a cross-party parliamentary group comprising Members of Parliament and the House of Lords, chaired jointly by Conservative David Warburton MP, Labour's Eleanor Smith MP and cross-bench peer Baroness Greengross.

The group comprises a further 17 parliamentarians, from Labour, the Conservatives, the Liberal Democrats, DUP, independent MPs and cross-bench peers.

The purpose of the APPG for Adult Social Care is to act as a forum for members of the House of Commons and Lords to engage with the wider adult social care sector with the aim of engaging in a cross-party and non-partisan manner to influence government policy on the reform of the adult social care system.

In June, Mr Warburton met with Claudine Brown, NHS operational manager working within the Children's and Adolescent Mental Health Service in Somerset, and Barbara Clift, non-executive director of the Somerset Partnership NHS Trust.  

Mr Warburton said: "It was extremely useful to meet earlier this year with Claudine Brown and Barbara Clift, and an important part of our discussion was the challenge faced by young people as they transition from children's social care into adult social care.

"As co-chair of the APPG for Adult Social Care I am determined to take these discussions further – these are huge issues for Somerset.

"I have also written to the Prime Minister inviting him to Somerset to visit St Margaret's Hospice, a charity which is so important to us and is facing real challenges in providing the level of care we need."

Data from the Care Quality Commission indicates that as at September 1 2019 there were 33 registered care homes in the Somerton and Frome Parliamentary constituency. Collectively these homes have a capacity of 1,045 beds (source: CQC Care Directory September 2019).

The most recently published 2017/18 report for Somerset indicates there were an estimated 19,000 jobs in adult social care split between local authorities (two per cent), independent sector providers (89 per cent) and jobs for direct payment recipients (eight per cent) (Skills for Care, Local Authority Report - Somerset 2017/18).

Mr Warburton said: "The NHS Long Term Plan is the first time that there's a multi-year guarantee of improved funding in primary, community, and mental health care that will grow faster than the overall NHS budget, which is itself growing.

"I do hope this shows that the Government is as determined as I am to ensure the long-term viability of the key institutions we all rely on."