Age UK highlights £500m social care funding shortfall
Age UK’s new Care in Crisis 2012 report shows that this year spending on older people’s social care in England has fallen half a billion pounds short of even maintaining the inadequate levels of provision in place when the Coalition came to power.
In order to maintain the same levels of service as in 2010, Age UK’s projections show that Government ought to be spending £7.8 billion this year. In fact councils have only budgeted £7.3 billion in the face of substantial reductions in central government funding.
Its analysis shows that the combined impact of growing demand for services and a £341 million reduction in older people’s social care budgets this financial year – equivalent to a 4.5 per cent cut – has created a £500 million shortfall.
This funding gap comes after several years of stagnating and then decreasing social care spending. Since 2004 the number of people aged over 85, and most likely to need care and support, has increased by over 250,000. The increasing demand, combined with a decrease in real terms spending on social care has created a real funding crisis.
Based on the figures in this report, Age UK projects that, by next year (2012/13) the Government will need to spend £1 billion more than this year just to stop things getting any worse.
Michelle Mitchell, charity director of Age UK said: "Our new figures show a funding gap clearly exists, that it currently stands at £500,000, and that it is growing bigger all the time. We need urgent Government action now, otherwise the gap will simply get worse.
"Behind these figures are real older people struggling to cope without the support they need, compromising their dignity and safety on a daily basis. Social care is not a nice to have extra – it is the support that helps older people get out of bed, feed themselves, have a wash, live a life that is more than just an existence.
"We urge all parties to engage openly and constructively in the cross-party talks on care to reach a settlement on this issue that guarantees both reform of the legal structure and most importantly the funding to make it work. The Government must not shirk its responsibility to lead the essential reform of the social care system."
Age UK is urging all those who care about the future for older people’s care to back its Care in Crisis campaign, demanding urgent reform of the social care system.
The charity has launched a Care in Crisis petition calling on the Government to reform the care system for older and disabled people so that everyone gets the care they need to live with respect and dignity. It aims to collect 100,000 signatures and will deliver them to the Government ahead of the planned White Paper on the future of long-term care.
To sign up to Age UK’s Care in Crisis petition calling for urgent care reform, visit www.ageuk.org.uk/careincrisis, or go to your local Age UK office or Age UK charity shop.
