Social care is under ‘intense pressure’ and needs reform after a record 2 million adults claimed support last year, a report warns.
Local authorities have seen an increase in applications for publicly funded care over the past decade, but the number receiving it has actually fallen.
The Social Care 360 report, published by think tank Kongens Fond, reveals that thousands of people are left to struggle without the support they need.
This may mean that they miss out on a place in a nursing home or help with washing, cooking and dressing in their own home.
The report calls on the next government to make social care a priority after years of reforms that have been “consistently avoided or delayed”.
Social care is under ‘intense pressure’ and needs reform after a record 2 million adults claimed support last year, a report has warned (stock image)
The figures come amid a tightening of financial eligibility criteria and against a backdrop of an aging population, the report adds.
Councils received 11 per cent more requests for care in 2022/23 than in 2015/16, with the number rising by almost 200,000 from 1.81 million to 2 million.
However, the number of people receiving publicly funded long-term care has fallen by 2 per cent. in the same period.
Just 835,000 people received such care in 2022/23, compared with 873,000 in 2015/16.
The report highlights that financial eligibility for care has continued to tighten and the threshold for help has remained unchanged since 2010/11.
Local authorities are also facing rising costs, with the bill to buy care from providers continuing to rise faster than inflation.
According to the King’s Fund, the average charge for working-age adults has risen to £1,540 from £1,400 since 2015/16, while the weekly charge for older people rose from £670 to £840.
The think tank also claims that the unemployment rate in the social work force is at its second highest ever, while around 19,000 fewer unpaid carers are receiving direct support.
Simon Bottery, senior fellow at The King’s Fund and lead author of the Social Care 360 report, said: ‘For decades social care reform has been promised by governments but consistently evaded or delayed.
‘The latest figures make it clear that the sector is showing little sign of improvement, leaving thousands of people without the support they need.
“There is severe financial pressure on local authorities who fund aged care and no sign that the national government will step in to help. Nor is there a credible long-term plan to recruit and retain the necessary staff.
“At a time when social care for adults has never faced more profound problems, with record numbers of people claiming support, surely now is the time for the next government, whatever its colour, to prioritize social care.”
The King’s Fund is calling on the next government to increase funding to stabilize the social sector and make it more attractive to current employees and potential new recruits.
It also said there must be funding and eligibility reforms to make the system fairer, as well as reforms to improve quality.
Kaya Comer-Schwartz, Social Care Spokesperson for the Local Government Association (LGA), said: ‘This important annual report highlights the perilous state of social care for adults.
‘It is disappointing and worrying that the Budget did not provide new money for these pressured services despite increased demand for them.’
The Department of Health and Social Care said it is ‘fully committed’ to improving the social care system, adding that it had made up to £8.6bn of additional funding available this financial year and next.
Think tanks warn the crisis could mean people miss out on a place in a care home or help with washing, cooking and dressing in their own homes (stock image)
Separate research today shows that one in 30 private care homes have been forced to close since 2011 due to safety concerns.
Almost all homes closed by the Care Quality Commission were found to be privately run, according to analysis by Oxford University.
The errors meant that up to 20,000 residents had to move urgently during that period as a result of closures, they estimate.
Experts said the findings suggest care homes operating on a for-profit basis tend to deliver worse care than third and public sector providers.
The study assessed the number of care homes to close following assessments carried out by CQC, the independent regulator for health and social care in England.
An involuntary closure is typically a last resort for nursing homes that have put their residents at risk or whose care services have consistently failed to meet industry standards.
They found 804 of 816 closures involved for-profit care organizations, a total of about one in 30 of all privately run facilities, according to findings published in The Lancet Healthy Longevity.
Alarmingly, 52 of the homes that had been forced to close had been rated “good” during their last CQC inspection, suggesting these homes posed acute safety concerns with residents at acute risk of harm.
Lead author Dr. Anders Bach-Mortensen said: “Although rare occurrences, forced closures typically involve serious regulatory and safety breaches that can impose significant costs on both the local authority and residents in need of relocation.
“But most importantly, the neglect that leads to a forced and emergency closure can be traumatic and harmful for residents.
‘To protect care users going forward, it should be a priority to investigate whether there are systematic reasons why these enforcements occur almost exclusively in private for-profit services.’
The analysis, commissioned by the Nuffield Trust health think tank, was based on data on forced closures requested from the CQC.
Registered charities, councils and NHS Trust care homes were considered ‘not-for-profit’ or public, while all private companies, partnerships and individual providers without a charity number were ‘for profit’.
Researchers warned there is a growing reliance on private providers, which accounted for more than 85 per cent of all care homes in England by September 2023, compared with 78 per cent in 2011.
Co-author Dr. Benjamin Goodair said: “What is needed is a comprehensive assessment of the impact of for-profit services on the quality and sustainability of social care for adults in England.”
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesman said: ‘We expect all care homes to adhere to high standards of quality and safety, regardless of whether they are run on a for-profit basis. When a setting or provider puts patient safety at risk, the Care Quality Commission will act accordingly.
‘We are fully committed to improving our social care system, having already made a further £8.6 billion available over this financial year and next to support aged care and discharge.
‘In addition, we are investing up to £700m in a major transformation of the adult social care system, which includes improving carers’ skills and supporting career progression, investing in technology and digitalisation and adapting people’s homes to enable them to live independently. ‘