Haringey Council's Overview and Scrutiny Committee will examine the effectiveness of its communications with residents in adult social care, aiming to improve service accessibility and responsiveness. The review will consider the experiences of residents, including response times, acknowledgement of enquiries and the rate of satisfactory resolution of issues.

The Overview and Scrutiny Committee is set to review the current communication arrangements between residents and Adult Social Care services. The review comes as the council faces increasing pressure to deliver efficient and effective services amid a challenging financial landscape.

The scrutiny review on communications with residents in adult social care aims to review the current arrangements for communications between residents and Adult Social Care services, including:

  • The experience of residents when they contact the council regarding Adult Social Care services, including response times, acknowledgement of enquiries and the rate of satisfactory resolution of issues.
  • How the council proactively updates residents about the status of their case, including with regards to assessments, safeguarding follow up and in circumstances where delays are anticipated.
  • How residents access the 'front door' to services, whether that is through the council's main communications channels or the locality team for their area.
  • The accessibility of information about adult care and support services on the council website and the online Haricare directory.

The Communications project scoping draft outlines the scope of the review, which includes the above points. The panel will seek to consider evidence from a broad range of witnesses and to develop recommendations to cabinet on possible improvements in communications with residents in Haringey.

The review aims to gather evidence from a variety of sources and provide recommendations to the cabinet on how to improve communications with Haringey residents.

The decision to launch the scrutiny review was made at the Overview and Scrutiny Committee meeting on 27 November 2025. The committee, chaired by Councillor Matt White, also includes Councillors Pippa Connor, Makbule Gunes, Anna Lawton, and Adam Small.

The OSC 27th Nov 2025 - Work Plan Development indicates that the committee will consider its capacity to deliver the programme, as well as the capacity of officers to support them in this task.

The review is scheduled for completion by February 2026, with a report to follow outlining the findings and recommendations.