Andrew Webster - Experienced Health & Care Leader

Carer Catalysts

How can we keep the spark of innovation going for unpaid carers?

Andrew, after 35 years in leadership roles in health and care, including Director of Social Services, chairing a major social enterprise and advising government, now supports innovators in care. Suzanne and Andrew talk about changing the narrative so that we don't have to put up with 'the way things are'.

"Find a place where you can do something different, and that could be a pilot.

"That could be an experiment that could be a trial supported by an academic institution.

"It could be, a grant to, a regeneration scheme that has got some care or carers elements built into it.

"Make sure that you keep lots and lots of your peers really well informed about it, because, this is in my experience, public sector systems can discourage the initial spark of innovation.

"But once it's going, it's quite hard to stamp it out because people will just spontaneously start doing things.

"And suddenly it becomes the norm."

• (00:00) - Welcome to Carer Catalysts
• (00:51) - What's coming up in this episode?
• (01:28) - Introducing Andrew Webster: Can you tell us about your career in social care?
• (03:25) - Why can't we talk about social care without including unpaid carers?
• (04:55) - How do we keep unpaid carers top of the agenda? What are some tangible things we can do?
• (08:03) - When you're in the thick of it, how do you keep your energy up to keep that drive going forward?
• (10:42) - What does the most successful change in public services come from?
• (11:26) - How do you choose what opportunities and innovation to focus on?
• (15:36) - How do you navigate all the challenges of navigating change in a big organisation or a complex system?
• (17:43) - How can you keep the spark of innovation going?
• (20:50) - Tell us another example of innovation you've been involved in: Transforming services for people with learning disabilities
• (25:22) - Any final tips on how people can make stuff happen? Check in with yourself and keep things in balance
• (27:36) - Key takeaways from our chat with Andrew

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The views of guests participating in this podcast are their own and may not represent the views of any affiliated organisation. The content is provided for information purposes only and does not constitute financial, medical or legal advice.