College Public Policy

Posted by Sophia Wilson on 19 January 2010

This afternoon I attended the Policy Exchange seminar on social care: ‘Careless: Why does no-one know about social care?’ It was an interesting event if not a bit depressing. Each speaker did pay lip-service to the argument that things were improving and that the issue will continue to rise up the political agenda, however the facts painted a gloomier picture. The media appear reluctant to write about it, politicians to debate about it and the public to spend the time thinking about it.

The focus on the media’s role was particularly interesting, especially since the event questioned why no-one knows about social care? Rosemary Bennett, Social Affairs Correspondent for The Times provided a very honest account of why the media isn’t interested in stories about social care. Such stories apparently receive a great response from readers and yet journalists have a battle on their hands to place them in newspapers. Social care stories are seen as depressing and the solutions to dealing with problems are complex. A new angle is needed to ensure these stories are included in the media. Perhaps not all stories need to be so depressing and should instead focus on the benefits that the funding brings to people in need? If the media writes about it, then politicians will debate about it and the public will begin to spend more time thinking about it…….

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