The Community Brokerage Network (CBN) has now published its full response to North Ayrshire Council’s health and social care consultation.
We brought together disabled people, unpaid carers, and family members to create this response because many people told us they felt unable to meaningfully engage with the consultation as it was presented. The questions asked people to make impossible choices about which parts of a person’s life should be supported, without reflecting the reality of how social care actually works.
What we heard
The strongest message from the focus group was fear. Not abstract concern, but real fear rooted in lived experience:
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Fear of losing essential support
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Fear of carers burning out
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Fear of people becoming housebound
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Fear that Self-Directed Support is being eroded in practice
Although no formal changes have yet been announced, the consultation sits alongside a stated £17 million budget gap. Many participants felt this clearly signalled a direction of travel towards reduced support in a system that is already failing many people.
One senior leader described the potential impact as “catastrophic” – a word that resonated strongly with those attending.
Key themes raised
Our response highlights several consistent concerns:
Our response highlights several consistent concerns:
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Support is interconnected
Personal care, emotional support, help with daily tasks, transport and social contact all work together. Removing “small” or “non-critical” elements often causes everything else to collapse. -
Early support prevents crisis
Small amounts of flexible, preventative support keep people well and independent. When this is withdrawn, costs don’t disappear – they reappear elsewhere through crisis intervention, hospital admission, or residential care. -
Unpaid carers are at breaking point
Many carers are already juggling multiple caring roles, disrupted sleep, reduced income and declining mental health. They cannot absorb further reductions without serious consequences for themselves and the people they care for. -
Workforce and pay issues are destabilising care
Inconsistent pay, delayed uplifts to Direct Payments, and unequal treatment across the care workforce are undermining recruitment, retention and choice. -
Human rights and SDS principles are at risk
Participants expressed deep concern that current approaches risk taking us backwards towards institutional models of care, undermining the independent living movement and the core principles of Self-Directed Support.
Our full response
The full consultation submission reflects the lived experience of at least 30 unpaid carers and 21 cared-for people across North Ayrshire. Not everyone was able to attend the session in person due to caring responsibilities, which in itself highlights the barriers many people face in being heard.
📄 Read or download the full consultation response here:
👉 CBN NAC HSCP Consultation Focus Group Report
👉 CBN NAC HSCP Consultation Focus Group Report
The consultation has now closed. Thank you for your contributions
Please share this page widely. The more voices that are heard, the harder it is for these concerns to be ignored.
If you need support to understand the consultation or to share your views, CBN is here to help.
