Sector Leaders React to ADASS Annual Survey
SOCIAL CARE needs emergency action today before any cross-party talks or Royal Commissions, campaigners have warned, and follows reports that the Government wants a Royal Commission on social care to gain cross-party consensus on tackling the crisis.
The report released today (July 16) by the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services (ADASS) illustrates a number of “stark truths” about the state of the sector warning that the country was struggling to meet ever-more complex demands for care. For example, the survey reveals a 7.5% increase in the number of people requiring multiple visits from two or more care workers, called ‘double handed care’ since last year, now totaling 49,000 people. As more care workers are needed to provide care and support to people with complex needs, costs to councils are increasing.
The Independent Care Group (ICG) wants to see the new Labour Government tackle the crisis in social care staffing before any other measures.
BE BOLD ACT NOW
ICG Chair Mike Padgham said:
“We hear today from ADASS that the financial situation in social care is as bad as it has ever been so the need for immediate action has never been greater.
“We fully understand the desirability of getting cross-party agreement on how to tackle the current situation and the appeal of a Royal Commission – but we would say we need to see an emergency switching of funds from the NHS into social care to tackle chronic unmet needs BEFORE setting out on any long-term investigations and reports.
“Tony Blair ordered a Royal Commission on Long-term Care in 1997. It took two years to publish its report and nothing came of it. Since then, we have seen at least eight Green Papers, four White Papers and two government-commissioned enquiries, and are now meeting our 15th secretary of state for health and our 18th minister for social care in that 27-year period. You will understand if we are a little sceptical of any more reports or commissions.”
Mr Padgham said the answer lay in getting more resources to councils to commission more care and to improve pay for those working in the sector.
“Everywhere you look there is unmet need and that is only going to get worse, with social care deserts cropping up in some parts of the country,” he added.
“We need to move funding into preventative measures, including social care provision, which keeps people out of hospitals. We can only do that by getting sufficient funding into social care that enables the sector to pay staff properly and tackle the 152,000 staff shortage we currently have.
“Providing care for people in their own home has been a central plank to all governments’ policies in recent years but none has tackled a lack of proper funding that would enable that need to be met.
“As a country, we need to be bold and act now so that people can get care at home. And we need to support care and nursing homes, not only because they provide long-term care when it is desirable but for the vital role they also play in rehabilitation, caring for people in the short term so that they can return home – a role that can get overlooked. We need to do all that now, not wait until we have the results of a Royal Commission to tell us what we already know.”
POSCTOCDE LOTTERY
Vic Rayner OBE, CEO of NCF said:
“This report shows for the first time how the changing needs of people are impacting on the availability of care and support within communities.
People coming forward for assessment for the first time, whether from home or hospital, have increasingly complex needs and it is crystal clear that local authority budgets have not kept pace, meaning many people are not getting the care they need, when and where they need it.
“The concerns being reported by DASSs that an increasing number of people whose care and support should be covered under Continuing Health Care are now requiring local authority funding or being forced to fund their own care, is alarming and must be addressed. The patchy and inconsistent nature of CHC is creating a postcode lottery, putting unnecessary pressure on individuals, carers and the system as a whole. This research shows that there is clearly a significant gap between the increasingly complex care and support people want in the community and what is actually available – this can’t go on.
“It is well understood that effective care provided at the right time can prevent people requiring further emergency care and hospital admission. Many of the challenges we are now seeing have their roots in the inaction of previous governments. The new government has an opportunity to tackle this urgent crisis head on and change the approach, so people are able to live their lives well. The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care has talked of fixing the broken NHS and we urge him and his department to seize the opportunity to ensure the pressures on social care are front and centre of these plans. We want to work together with the new government to help address the immediate priorities and look forward to bringing the combined expertise of our diverse membership to finding solutions to these challenges.”
THROWS DOWN THE GAUNTLET
Kathryn Smith, Chief Executive of the Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE), responds to the latest annual survey from the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services (ADASS).
“This report throws down the gauntlet for the new government by setting out the scale of the task at hand. The message is clear, the social care system is severely overstretched. The combination of budget constraints and rising care complexity from discharged patients means councils are unable to meet their statutory duties. The result is unmet or under-met social care needs, especially for local people recovering from a hospital stay.
“For years, the social care sector’s interdependence and value to the NHS has been underappreciated. Now is the moment for change. The Government has an opportunity to flip the script and invest in social care to save the NHS.
“Expanding the social care offer through sustained investment in community rehabilitation, reablement and intermediate care will prevent the need for long-term care as well as unplanned hospital admissions. Greater availability of community prevention and early support services allows the care system both to meet growing demand and to support efforts to reduce NHS waiting lists. Getting this investment right will be transformational to the lives of millions of people.”
LACK OF PROVISION
Sarah Walter director of the NHS Confederation’s Integrated Care Systems Network said:
“This survey reflects what ICS leaders see in their local areas where the lack of social care provision, funding and workforce continues to put pressure on NHS services, and more importantly mean many people are not receiving the best possible care in the most appropriate setting.
“The integrated working between the NHS, local authorities and beyond which ICS facilitate and drive is critical for meeting the health needs of the population. ICS have an important opportunity to ensure people can receive truly person-centred care in the coming years, and that’s why it’s critical the new government resists the urge to undertake top-down reorganisation of the health service. Instead, ICS, including social care providers, must be empowered with resource and political trust to move their work forward.
“There’s much to welcome in what the new government has set out in their intended plans for social care – given workforce shortages, the measures set out for a National Care Service are welcome, including on ensuring standards, which will help to improve care whilst providing a secure and rewarding career for people in our communities.
“We look forward to the publication of Skills for Care’s Social Care Workforce Plan and hope the government will give it thoughtful consideration. A plan for the social care workforce has been a key call of our members in previous months.
