Age UK is a charity working locally, regionally and nationally with and for older people to promote the well-being of all older people and to make later life a fulfilling and enjoyable experience.

www.ageuk.org.uk

Alzheimer Scotland is Scotland's leading dementia charity. It provides services and campaigns actively to help people with dementia and their families and carers.

www.alzscot.org.uk

The Association of Directors of Social Work is a constituted group of senior social workers who work in Scottish local government and aim to promote social welfare, social inclusion and the interests of those who use the social work services.

www.adsw.org.uk

Audit Scotland's role is to provide the Auditor General and the Accounts Commission with the services they need to carry out their duty to check that public money is spent properly, efficiently and effectively by public bodies in Scotland.

www.accounts-commission.gov.uk

The BASW is an organisation of members serving members.

www.basw.co.uk

Official website of the BGS, an association of doctors, nurses, therapists and scientists with a particular interest in the medical care of the frail older person and in promoting better health in old age.

www.bgs.org.uk/

Inspects and regulates care services by taking account of the National Care Standards.

www.carecommission.com

The Care Information Scotland website provides information about care services for older people living in Scotland.

www.careinfoscotland.co.uk/home.aspx

Website providing news and articles relating to all areas of social care, including regularly updated summaries from national newspapers, recruitment section and directory of care providers.

www.communitycare.co.uk

Convention of Scottish Local Authorities . COSLA is the representative voice of Scottish local government and also acts as the employers' association on behalf of all Scottish councils.

www.cosla.gov.uk

The Readiness Tools (RTs) have been developed by the Department of Health.s Care Services Improvement Partnership Networks, in collaboration with Professor Bob Hudson from Durham Universtiy, in order to assist local agenices assess their readiness for the new forms of working required by Our health, Our care, Our say.

www.readiness-tools.com

Based at the University of Stirling, the Dementia Centre's role is to extend and improve services for people with dementia and their carers in Scotland.

www.dementia.stir.ac.uk

DH Care Networks aims to help frontline care organisations work together to deliver flexible services that help people remain in control and live independent lives.

www.dhcarenetworks.org.uk/index.cfm

Northern Ireland is leading the way in developing new technologies to help people with chronic conditions live independently at home and was recently made a European Centre for Excellence.

www.eu-cch.org

The Foundation for People with Learning Disabilities aims to improve the quality of life for people with learning disabilities by conducting research and sharing the findings with other people. The foundation is a registered charity that works with people and their families to ensure they can use effective services, play a fuller part in communities and society and enjoy equal rights.

www.learningdisabilities.org.uk

HandsOnScotland is an online resource for anybody working with or caring for children and young people. The website provides practical information and techniques on how to respond helpfully to children and young people's troubling behaviour and offers advice and activities on how to help them flourish.

www.handsonscotland.co.uk

The Improvement and Support Team runs national improvement programmes to improve patient experience and service delivery in the NHS.

www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Health/NHS-Scotland/Delivery-Improvement

The Health Scotland Local Government Programme is intended to help develop relationships and support health improvement activity between COSLA and other national local government organisations and agencies, all 32 councils and Community Planning Partnerships. This site is for all those within local government who have an interest and role in improving health.

www.improvementservice.org.uk

The Institute for Research and Innovation in Social Services (IRISS) is a charitable organisation that works to improve the outcomes of service users by supporting and improving the capability of the the social services workforce.

www.iriss.org.uk/

The Mental Welfare Commission is an independent organisation set up by Parliament with the responsibility of protecting the welfare of people with mental disorder (including learning disabilities and dementia) in Scotland. It has a duty to anyone with a mental disorder whether they are in hospital, in local authority, voluntary run or private accommodation or in their own home.

www.mwcscot.org.uk

NHS QIS was established as a Special Health Board by the Scottish Executive in 2003 in order to act as the lead organisation in improving the quality of healthcare delivered by NHS Scotland.

www.nhshealthquality.org

PANSI was developed by the Institute of Public Care (IPC) for the Care Services Efficiency Delivery Programme (CSED) and is a programme designed to help explore the possible impact that demography and certain conditions may have on populations aged 18 to 64.

www.pansi.org.uk/

POPPI was developed by the Institute of Public Care (IPC) for the Care Services Efficiency Delivery Programme (CSED) and designed to help explore the possible impact that demography and certain conditions may have on populations aged 65 and over.

www.poppi.org.uk/

A Department of Health initiative, RightCare is designed to increase the value from the resources allocated and directly address variations in NHS spend, activity and outcomes. The programme aims to empower patients to make the right choices and empower commissioners to improve value.

www.rightcare.nhs.uk/

The Scottish Ambulance Service is a Special Health Board funded directly by the Health Department of the Scottish Executive to deliver frontline NHS services.

www.scottishambulance.com

A centre of expertise set up to support Telehealth solutions by disseminating best practice, developing inter-operable standards and protocols, providing practical support, and evaluating the impact of telehealth on service redesign.

www.sct.scot.nhs.uk/index.html

The Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations is the national body representing the voluntary sector. It seeks to advance the values and shared interests of the voluntary sector by fostering co-operation, promoting best practice and delivering sustainable services.

www.scvo.org.uk

The Scottish Development Centre for Mental Health aims to improve mental health and well-being for individuals and communities in Scotland and enhance services and support for people with mental health problems.

www.sdcmh.org.uk

SFHA is owned by its membership and exists to support the work of housing associations and co-operatives in Scotland by providing services, advice and good practice guidance.

www.sfha.co.uk

The Scottish Health Council is a body that was set up by the Scottish Executive in 2005 to ensure that the views of patients and the public are properly taken into account by Health Boards.

www.scottishhealthcouncil.org

Official website of the Scottish Parliament

www.scottish.parliament.uk

The Scottish Social Services Council is responsible for raising standards in the Scottish social services workforce.

www.sssc.uk.com

This site will be of interest to all those involved with self directed support. As well as general information on self directed support tailored to both clients and professionals, the website features video case studies, a blog, an interactive eligibility checker, links to support organisations and more. A Library section lets visitors upload documents so that those working in the health and social care sector can share training materials and other useful resources.

www.selfdirectedsupportscotland.org.uk

Shifting the Balance of Care (SBC) aims to improve the health and wellbeing of the people of Scotland by increasing emphasis on health improvement and anticipatory care, providing more continuous care and more support closer to home. This requires a partnerships approach between the NHS, Local Authorities and the third sector.

www.shiftingthebalance.scot.nhs.uk/

Information for social services professionals, service users and carers

www.ssks.org.uk/

Social Work Inspection Agency (SWIA) is a Scottish Executive agency that inspects all social work services in Scotland and reports publicly and to Parliament on the quality of those services, locally and nationally. SWIA aims to deliver rigorous inspections that will drive up standards and improve the quality of social work services across Scotland.

www.swia.gov.uk

Society of Local Authority Chief Executives and Senior Managers . SOLACE is the representative body for senior strategic managers working in local government. The society promotes effective local government and provides professional development for its members.

www.solace.org.uk

The representative body for the Telecare industry in the UK. Information online about standards, best practice, the TSA Code of Practice, accredited members, and benefits of joining the TSA.

www.telecare.org.uk

The Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) is the professional body for people working in housing. Its purpose is to maximise the contribution that housing professionals make to the well-being of communities.

www.cih.org

The Scottish Government's National Programme for improving mental health and well-being is driving a change in knowledge, attitudes and behaviour towards mental health. Positive mental health is essential if Scotland is to enjoy a healthier future.

www.wellscotland.info/index.html