Unlocking access to social care in England

Image © Access Social Care

In 2016, Kari Gerstheimer was leading a legal team at a disability charity in the UK when she had an ambitious idea: to create a legal service for her clients that could be funded and shared by multiple charities across the country.

That idea became Access Social Care. Following a successful pilot hosted by UK-based not-for-profit Mencap, which supports people living with learning disabilities, the organisation has since grown from a small team of two into a national charity with nearly 50 staff. Today, it provides social care systems across England with specialist legal advice, pro bono support, digital tools and frontline evidence.

Access Social Care works with more than 20 member charities, supporting people and families to secure the care they need. It also connects leading law firms with cases where specialist legal support can make a meaningful difference.

Alongside this national work, community hubs help bring support closer to people, making sure that advice reaches those who need help the most.

Access Social Care has also helped strengthen the wider field of community care law. After commissioning the Career Pathways report 2022, the organisation helped create the Community Care Lawyers Group: a peer network offering support and specialist training for lawyers working in this area. Digital tools such as AccessAva, its free online service, is available 24 hours a day and offers clear information and guidance on social care law. More than 25,000 people have used the tool to better understand their rights and take practical next steps.

For Access Social Care, this is the power of turning frontline experience into shared evidence. Individual cases can help inform staff training and support change that benefits many more people.

By addressing the root causes of common challenges, Access Social Care is helping to improve the social care system so that people can understand how best to meet their needs with confidence and clarity. “Its work is rooted in a simple belief,” says Kari. “That is, people should be able to access the care they need.”

Oak supports Access Social Care through our  Special Interest Programme. Driven by the interests of our Trustees, it provides the space and flexibility to make grants outside of Oak’s other programme strategies. For free information and guidance about adult social care, visit AccessAva.