Welcome to the State of our Nation, a podcast by Access Social Care.
Want to learn more about social care? Listen as we invite experts, leaders and change-makers to discuss highs and lows in the adult social care system, and shine a light on a sector that impacts us all.
Co-hosted by Kari Gerstheimer, CEO & Founder Access Social Care (https://www.accesscharity.org.uk/) and Andy McCabe, Co-convenor Social Care Future (https://socialcarefuture.org.uk/).
Writer and disability rights activist Penny Pepper joins Andy McCabe to discuss representation, punk, creativity, and the realities of navigating systems that often fail disabled people. Penny shares why disabled stories need to move beyond stereotypes, and how autonomy and meaningful social care can change lives. A candid conversation about identity, power, and whose stories get heard.
1 Oct 2026
Episode 3: Will Pike
Will Pike joins Kari to discuss disability, autonomy, and the systems that shape access to support. Drawing on his experience of spinal injury and his work as a disability rights campaigner, Will explains how bureaucracy, inaccessible environments, and decisions made without disabled people can undermine dignity and inclusion.
They explore why lived experience matters, how universal design can benefit everyone, and what it takes to build care and support systems that work for the people who rely on them.
Watch Will’s short film, Yes I Can, If: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bjvYZ2jvvp8 (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bjvYZ2jvvp8)
23 Sept 2026
Episode 2: Sonia Sodha
This episode of State of our Nation explores why social care in England is at breaking point, and why meaningful reform has proved so difficult. Sonia Sodha breaks down how the system works, why more than a million adults are going without the care they need, and how the current model places too much responsibility on families. The conversation also examines funding, the value of care work, and what a fairer national care service could look like — putting dignity, support and real lives at the centre of the debate.
Podcast Authority Score: 10 / 100
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