The Care Quality Commission (CQC), has rated the London Borough of Bromley as requires improvement, in how well they are meeting their responsibilities to ensure people have access to adult social care and support under the Care Act (2014).
CQC has a new duty under the Act to assess how local authorities work with their communities and partners to meet their responsibilities. This includes promoting the wellbeing and independence of working age disabled adults, older people, and their unpaid carers to reduce their need for formal support where appropriate. Where support is needed it should provide people with choice and control of how their care needs are met.
CQC looked at nine areas spread across four themes to assess how well the authority is meeting their responsibilities in order to create their rating. CQC has given each of these nine areas a score out of four with one being the evidence shows significant shortfalls, and four showing an exceptional standard.
1. assessing people’s needs: 2
2. supporting people to lead healthier lives: 2
3. equity in experience and outcomes: 2
4. care provision, integration and continuity of care: 2
5. partnership and communities: 3
6. safe pathways, systems and transitions: 2
7. safeguarding: 2
8. governance, management and sustainability: 2
9. learning, improvement and innovation: 3
Chris Badger, CQC’s chief inspector of adult social care and integrated care, said:
“During our inspection of the London Borough of Bromley, we found a mixed picture of people’s experiences accessing adult social care. Leaders were aware of the challenges they faced and had begun making changes to address areas of concern, but they need to make more progress to ensure people receive timely and equitable support.
“People and unpaid carers told us they struggled to access support, particularly at the first point of contact. The local authority didn’t always respond promptly, and delays in assessments and reviews left some people without the support they needed. Many carers were unsure who to contact or what help was available, which left some feeling isolated and unsupported.
“Partners told us Bromley’s support for young people transitioning between children’s and adult services had been an issue for several years. Services weren’t always joined up meaning some young people fell through gaps, particularly around education and employment. While some transitions were well planned, others left people feeling unsupported and uninformed, causing stress for them and their families.
“However, once people accessed adult social care services, most told us they had positive experiences and people receiving short term support to regain independence had good experiences. Staff treated people with respect, involved them in decisions about their care and worked in a person-centred way. People described strong collaboration between professionals, families and support workers to support both their physical and emotional wellbeing.
“Bromley has become quicker at carrying out assessments and reviews. We found waiting times had fallen from around five and a half months in September 2024 to just two weeks by August 2025, after the local authority introduced a new pilot led by occupational therapists as its main contact point.
“Leaders understand where they need to improve and had already begun taking action at the time of the assessment. This included implementing a new front door and safeguarding model to address identified gaps and shortfalls, as well as strengthening support for unpaid carers and improving transitions between services for young people. We look forward to returning to see how this work develops and the difference it makes for people in Bromley.”
The assessment team found:
- The local authority needs to address gaps in provision so that working-age adults with complex needs, people with mental health needs and people living with dementia can receive care within the borough.
- People told us advocacy support was often introduced too late in their care journey, and staff understanding of when advocacy should be offered varied across teams. However, when people received advocacy support, their experience was positive.
- The local authority’s approach to equality, diversity and inclusion required further development. Engagement with some communities, including LGBT+ communities, veterans, and people with substance misuse or HIV was limited.
- Some people felt digitally excluded. Information was not always available in accessible or alternative formats, such as easy read, and some people relied on others to help them access services and complete forms.
However, the assessment team also found:
- There was a culture of learning and innovation. Staff had access to varied training and professional development.
- The local authority had introduced assistive technology pathways and piloted new models of care at the front door, which contributed to improved outcomes and reduced reliance on residential care.
- The local authority involved people with lived experience as quality checkers, which was a positive example of involving people using services to monitor their effectiveness.
- Workforce stability was a strength. Staff retention was high and the use of agency staff was low, supporting continuity of care for people.