Members of the council’s people overview and scrutiny committee met at The Civic Centre in Carlisle on Tuesday (July 28) to hear an update on the CQC Assurance Framework for Local Authorities. Paul Arts, the council’s principal social worker for adults, told members that the assessments were introduced in 2023 and there was ‘an awful lot of preparation needed’. Members heard that the assessments began in January last year and the report was received in February this year after its publication in January 2026. Councillor Jeanette Whalen (Yewdale, Labour) asked if there were any examples of improvements made so far and Mr Arts said: “We’ve developed an unpaid carers forum and we’ve developed a carers charter.” In addition the focus will be on commissioning and whether local services are joined up, flexible, sustainable and high-quality as well as communities where partnerships enable better prevention, continuity of support, coproduction of services.