From the Editor: Social Care leaders unimpressed by Autumn Statement
The Care Home Environment Magazine
The Care Home Environment is the leading business information resource focusing on the build and equipping of care homes
Social care leaders have been quick to express their concern about the Chancellor’s failure to announce specific measures for adult social care in his Autumn Statement.
Chancellor Jeremy Hunt MP delivered his “Autumn Statement for growth” on 22 November. While an increase in the national living wage (by more than a pound an hour) from April, combined with a cut in National Insurance contributions from 12 to 10 per cent from January, will doubtless be welcomed by struggling social care staff, the chancellor’s statement – as with the King’s Speech that preceded it – did not contain any measures specifically aimed at tackling the pressing issues facing social care.
In response to the statement, Prof Martin Green OBE, chief executive of Care England said: “The Autumn Statement placed a huge emphasis on growing our economy. What was overlooked was that the adult social care sector contributes more than £50bn to the economy per annum. The people receiving care and support, the staff, and the taxpayers all feel the effects of the instability of our sector. The government must now invest in social care to truly stabilise a key pillar of our society and economy.”
“Central government investment has never been more critical, alongside a long-term workforce plan akin to that of the NHS to ensure social care is a desirable sector to join and remain a part of. With more people now expected to return to work as part of the government’s economic growth plan, there will be new opportunities for our domestic workforce to grow.”
National Care Forum CEO Professor Vic Rayner OBE commented: “What is notably missing from the Chancellor’s ‘110 measures for growth’ is any mention of adult social care and its untapped potential to unlock economic growth, empower individuals and communities, and support unpaid carers and those accessing social care into the workforce. If he was instead to think social care first, then the huge growth potential being created around tech in care, opportunities for further apprenticeships, and the development of the care workforce would be obvious.
“The Chancellor’s Autumn Statement fails to recognise that social care matters to us all. Without long-term investment in adult social care and local government, we will simply continue to see the widening of profound health and care inequalities as identified in the Care Quality Commission State of Care Report.”
According to Sam Monaghan , chief executive of Methodist Homes MHA , the UK's largest charity care provider: “Critical services for older people are facing multiple challenges which urgently require the government’s attention. As well as higher operational costs due to increases in both inflation and energy prices, and an ongoing recruitment and retention crisis, people are also waiting far too long for social care assessments.
“The Chancellor has missed an opportunity to invest in these essential social care services and better support people’s care needs … With a general election looming, we hope the major political parties use their manifestos as an opportunity to demonstrate their commitment to a social care sector that is fit for purpose.”
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