MPs: Spell out social care funding plan this year or risk crippling sector
2 min read
Ministers must produce a plan to save the struggling social care system this year - or risk the sector ending up “on its knees”, a powerful group of MPs has said.
The Public Accounts Committee said social care services were “scraping by” while short-term cash injections were “a road to nowhere”.
In a new report, the watchdog lamented that the sector was underfunded, with a workforce suffering from low pay and low self esteem.
It argued ministers had no idea if local market issues were compounding the funding problems - and warned that Brexit could fuel issues around the workforce.
Committee chair Meg Hillier said: “Adult social care needs sustainable funding and a stable workforce.
“The sector is scraping by and without an explicit, long-term plan backed by Government it could soon be on its knees.
“Levels of unmet need are high and rising; short-term funding fixes are a road to nowhere and the ingrained issues that lead to high turnover in the workforce could be compounded by Brexit.”
She said the Government must demand more than a legal minimum standard of care from councils and must not waste time with further research and consultations of the already well-documented problems.
“We urge Government to publish this year, and then implement, a credible long-term funding plan for care,” Ms Hillier declared.
One of the key recommendations of the committee was for the Department of Health and Social Care to launch a campaign to reverse the poor public image of care work in a bid to boost recruitment and retention.
Tory MPs in January rebuked the Prime Minister after she failed to meet their demands to lay out a long-term strategy for health and social care.
She also suffered a major blow at the election when the proposed Tory shakeup of social care funding was dubbed a 'dementia tax' and rejected by voters at the ballot box.
In March last year Chancellor Philip Hammond announced a £2bn cash injection for the ailing social care system.
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: "We know the social care system is under pressure — that's why we've provided an extra £2 billion funding to the sector and a further £150 million for the next year, and will shortly outline the Government's plans to reform social care to ensure it is sustainable for the future.”
"We are also working on a joint health and social care workforce strategy to ensure the system is able to meet the demands of our growing ageing population as well as looking at ways to promote social care as a career of choice and attract staff to the profession.”
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