Councils confirm thousands are suffering as home care providers hand back contracts

Nearly 80 councils have seen home care providers close in the last six months impacting on over 7,000 people, according to new research.

This figure is more than double the number affected last year.

The survey published by The Association of Directors of Adult Social Services (ADASS) also stated 38 directors had contracts handed back by home care providers which impacted on nearly 3,500 people in the same period.

As a result of its findings, ADASS is calling on the government to provide a long-term, sustainable funding solution for adult social care and for funding from the Spending Review to be for at least two years and to continue until whatever is in the promised Green Paper can be produced and implemented.

President of ADASS, Julie Ogley, said: “Too many older and disabled people and their families still struggle without getting the help they need. Social workers, managers and councillors are having to make incredibly difficult decisions based on dwindling resources, which should not be allowed to happen in a modern, compassionate society.

“We cannot be expected to keep relying on emergency, one-off funding just to keep services going while not knowing about how much might be available for the rest of this year, let alone next. Despite these immense challenges, the 150 adult social care directors across the country who provided these results have shown what they have been able to do in order to make savings, while continuing to keep the interests of the most vulnerable and elderly in our communities at the very heart of every decision they take."

She called on the new Prime Minister to "make social care an immediate priority" and said: " A thriving economy and a caring nation requires it."

The survey also revealed that since 2010, adult social care directors in councils across England have had to make a £7 billion of savings, and need to find a further £700 million for 2019/20, just as demand and needs are rising.

In response to the research by ADASS, Sally Copley, director of policy and campaigns at Alzheimer’s Society, said: “How much more evidence do we need that social care is on its knees? The significant increase in the number of home care providers closing over the last year means an ever-increasing number of people and their families are at risk of a future without adequate support and facing crippling costs.

“By failing to take action, the government is betraying hundreds of thousands of people who depend on social care for support. The hope for a long-term sustainable funding solution is slipping away as pressures mount. People with dementia face significantly higher care costs than those without the disease - we need action now to create a dedicated dementia fund so they can access the quality care they so urgently need.”

The ADASS budget survey reveals that 38 per cent of the average council’s budget is spent on adult social care. This also means that councils have less money to spend on universal services that can help people to remain independent and add quality to their lives.

Cllr David Williams, County Councils Network spokesman for health and social care, and leader of Hertfordshire County Council said: “The County Councils Network’s recent report on council funding pressures over the next six years clearly illustrates that the present situation is unsustainable.

"By 2025, county authorities will be spending £2.9bn more on adult social care services compared to what they were spending a decade prior; their large and ageing populations means that they are most exposed to demand and cost pressures. This is compounded by the geographical nature of county areas, with larger travel times driving up costs of providing care services.”

He also urged the new Prime Minister "to make the publication of the green paper one of their top domestic priorities" saying: "This document must set out bold and radical reform to the system which does not shirk the difficult questions as to who and how we pay for care”.