Independent Care Group - the voice of independent care providers in York and North Yorkshire

ICG 10th Anniversary

Independent Care Group is Registered in England. Company Registration Number 4433126. Registered Office 10 North Park Road, Harrogate , HG1 5PG.

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What is the Independent Care Group (ICG)?

All care providers who operate in York and North Yorkshire are WELCOME to join the ICG. We want you with us helping to influence the future. We are YOUR organisation.

ICG is the recognised representative body for independent care providers (private and voluntary) in York and North Yorkshire. We work on behalf of care providers for all client groups including care homes, domiciliary care agencies, supported living and extra care housing providers, and day care centres in the private and voluntary parts of the independent sector.

What does the Independent Care Group do?

ICG is committed to helping care providers to give the best possible service to the vulnerable people they care for – working in partnership with others to make this a reality.

On behalf of care providers we work with North Yorkshire County Council (NYCC), City of York Council (CYC), the Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) in North Yorkshire and the regulator CQC. We act as a conduit passing on the views and concerns of providers and the requirements of commissioners in an each-way process. We try to achieve the best possible solution for the independent sector on all issues including fee rates, contract terms and assistance through training. We make sure that care providers have input into quality standards and assessments which are clear and achievable. We represent providers on the Safeguarding Boards and we press for clarity and transparency of processes.

We have part-funded an independent Cost of Care exercise for care homes for older people in York and North Yorkshire working in partnership with North Yorkshire County Council, City of York Council and the NHS Partnership Commissioning Unit. The independent exercise was undertaken by Mazars. This is the second independent exercise which came from an agreement reached between ICG and its Judicial Review claimants in 2012. The report from Mazars using data gathered in the exercise has been used negotiations between ICG and the commissioners to set fee rates 2016-20.

As members of the Partnership Board for North Yorkshire we work with all parties to try to maintain the stability of the market while at the same time encouraging innovation and service development in line with personalisation. We are active in putting forward the case for assistance to the care sector through economic development funds to help with business change.

Most importantly we aim to make sure that our members are given all the information they need to keep up to date and provide a high quality service.

We produce a quarterly newsletter which covers current issues and concerns and is posted out to all care providers and to all Councillors and MPs as well as local authority and NHS senior managers.

Our weekly e-mail information update is our most popular service - keeping members up to date with news, new legal requirements, best practice guidance and training opportunities. And members contact us on a daily basis to discuss issues affecting them.

We evaluate our service to members every two years. 48% of members responded to our latest review and again 100% said that the ICG is good value for money. Here are a few of the comments received:
  'Outstanding organisation for the care sector. Well represented and well led.'
  'ICG are an invaluable resource, thank you for all your support and especially the weekly updates which, in relation to my role, are especially useful.'
  'The ICG is very professional and well run.'
  'As a new manager in domiciliary care I have found the help and support from ICG to be most valuable. I would be lost without it.'
  'We just thank you for all you do and always being there when needed.'
  'I would be lost without ICG, complete value for money, really helpful and informative, you feel much more in control of what’s going on and what we need to prepare for.'
  'I don’t know how care companies in other areas cope without having an ICG.'
  'Mike’s profile regionally and nationally also invaluable. Increasing work re dom care and LD welcome.'
  'I think ICG have done a tremendous job getting the financial plight of the care sector to headline news from hardly even a story 6 months ago. Seeing Mike on breakfast news speak so eloquently about the problems was such a giant step forward due in no small part to all the hard work of everyone at ICG – my sincere thanks go to all of you.'

Our Conference in November 2016 focused on Recruitment and Retention and gave delegates a wealth of new ideas on how to attract, recruit and retain the right kind of staff to provide high quality care. See Conference.