£2.6m Investment Package For Adult Social Care As Westminster City Council Approves New Budget Plans

Westminster City Council has today announced a major new investment of £2.6m to go into cushioning the cost of adult social care – meaning hundreds of adult social care users will now not pay for care, while hard working care assistants will earn more.

Approved at Full Council additional funding for adult social care includes £1.4m to increase the pay of the personal care assistants (over 400 staff) who provide care for Westminster residents through direct payments.

This will improve the quality of care for care receivers and help more people who use adult social care to employ the carer they want as they will now be able to pay a competitive salary.

Direct payment recipients will now be able to offer an additional £1.50- £2.00 an hour salary for their personal assistant, so those who opt to receive direct payments to pay for their care needs will see their monthly funds increase.

An additional £1.2m is also being invested to level up the threshold at which people start to pay for their social care costs so that it is the same for everyone regardless of age. This will help over 460 residents aged under 65 to keep more of their income before paying care bills.

The approval of the budget at Full Council coincides with the launch of the new Fairer Westminster delivery plan, which outlines the council’s ambitions for the future of the city, and what it wants to achieve to make Westminster a great place to live. Led by voices and priorities from the community, the new plan aims to create meaningful change by providing effective, value-for-money services and accessible opportunities for all, so every resident in the city can thrive.

The budget sets out detailed spending plans for managing more than 20,000 local authority properties under what is called the Housing Revenue Account. The business plan includes total capital investment of £916m over the next 5 years and a total of £2.5bn over the full 30 years. The budget also sets out the business plan for funding the council’s fairer Westminster programme under its capital strategy. The Council is proposing a gross capital programme up to 2038/39 of £2.5bn, partially offset by nearly £1.2bn of income, giving a net budget of £1.3bn.

Despite the scale of new investment, the Council Tax rise equals just 48p a week for a Band D* property, which means Westminster still has one of the lowest Council Tax rates in the country. The Westminster City Council part of the Council Tax rises by 4.99 per cent overall – 2.99 per cent for council services and 2 per cent for the portion set aside for adult social care.

Cllr Adam Hug, leader of Westminster City Council, said: “Rising bills and cost of living pressures impact on everyone and I’m glad we have been able to ensure hundreds of Westminster residents no longer need to pay for their social care.

“We have also been able to look after the carers who will now receive increased pay – that is only right for people who often work long hours and provide a lifeline to vulnerable people.

“This Budget is providing security in three big ways – security of home, on the streets, and the safety net of a City Council that looks after you when you need care. This is what drives our mission to create a fairer Westminster.”