Social care is under ‘intense pressure’ and needs reform after a record number of two million adults applied for support last year, a report has warned.
Local governments have seen an increase in applications for publicly funded care over the past decade, but the number receiving this care has actually fallen.
The Social Care 360 report, published by think tank King’s Fund, reveals thousands of people are being left behind without the support they need.
It could mean missing out on a place in a care home or helping 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 being ‘consistently dodged or delayed’.
Social care is under ‘intense pressure’ and needs reform after a record number of 2 million adults applied for support last year, a report has warned (stock image)
The figures come in a context of tightening eligibility criteria for financial support and against the backdrop of an aging population, the report said.
Local authorities received 11 percent more healthcare requests in 2022/2023 than in 2015/16, with the number increasing by almost 200,000 from 1.81 million to 2 million.
However, the number of people receiving publicly funded long-term care fell by 2 percent over the same period.
Only 835,000 people received such care in 2022/23, compared to 873,000 in 2015/16.
The report highlights that the financial right to care has become increasingly strict, with the threshold for assistance remaining unchanged since 2010/2011.
Local governments are also confronted with rising costs, with the bill for purchasing care from providers continuing to rise faster than inflation.
According to the King’s Fund, the average rate for working age adults has risen from £1,400 to £1,540 since 2015/16, while the weekly rate for older people has risen from £670 to £840.
The think tank also claims that the vacancy rate in social care is at its second highest level on record, while around 19,000 fewer unpaid care workers 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 avoided 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 are heavy financial pressures on local authorities who fund adult social care, and there are no signs that the national government will step in to help. There is also no credible longer-term plan to recruit and retain the necessary staff.
‘At a time when adult social care has never faced more profound problems, with record numbers of people asking for support, now is certainly the time for the next government, whatever color it may be, to make social care a to make it a priority.’
The King’s Fund is calling on the next government to increase funding to stabilize the social care sector and make it more attractive to current staff and potential new recruits.
It also said funding and eligibility reforms are needed 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 dangerous state of adult social care.
‘It is disappointing and concerning that the Budget has not provided new money for these under-pressure services, despite increased demand for them.’
The Department of Health and Social Care said it was “fully committed” to improving the social care system, adding that it had made up to £8.6 billion 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 home (stock image)
Separate research 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 an analysis by the University of Oxford.
Due to the shortcomings, an estimated 20,000 residents had to urgently relocate during that period as a result of the closures.
Experts say the findings suggest that for-profit care homes tend to provide worse care than third and public sector providers.
The study assessed the number of care homes required to close based on assessments carried out by the CQC, the independent regulator of health and social care in England.
An involuntary closure is typically a last resort for care homes that have put their residents at risk, or whose care services have consistently failed to meet industry standards.
They found that 804 of the 816 closures involved for-profit healthcare organizations, which amounts to about one in 30 of all private institutions, according to the findings published in The Lancet Healthy Longevity.
Alarmingly, 52 of the homes forced to close were rated ‘good’ at their last CQC inspection, suggesting these homes posed pressing safety risks, with residents at acute risk of harm.
Lead author Dr. Anders Bach-Mortensen said: ‘Although these are rare events, forced closures typically involve serious regulatory and safety breaches that can cause significant costs to both local authorities and residents who need to relocate.
‘But most importantly, the neglect that leads to a forced and acute closure can be traumatic and harmful to residents.
‘To protect healthcare users in the future, it should be a priority to investigate whether there are systematic reasons why these enforcements occur almost exclusively in private, for-profit facilities.’
The analysis, commissioned by the Nuffield Trust health think tank, was based on data on forced closures requested from the CQC.
Registered charities, council care homes and the NHS Trust were considered ‘not-for-profit’ or public, while all private companies, partnerships and individual providers without a charity number were ‘for-profit’.
Researchers warned that there is a growing reliance on private providers, who accounted for more than 85 per cent of all care homes in England in September 2023, up from 78 per cent in 2011.
Co-author Dr Benjamin Goodair said: ‘What is needed is a comprehensive assessment of the impact of for-profit provision on the quality and sustainability of adult social care in England.’
A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Social Care 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 an institution or healthcare provider jeopardizes patient safety, the Healthcare Quality Commission will take action accordingly.
‘We are fully committed to improving our social care system, having already made an additional £8.6 billion available this financial year to support adult social care and discharge.
‘In addition, we are investing up to £700 million in a major transformation of the adult social care system, including improving caregivers’ skills and supporting career development, investing in technology and digitalisation, and adapting people’s homes so they can live independently. ‘