Skip to main content

Councils will still struggle to afford care for elderly

AT LEAST one in five councils will struggle to provide more winter homecare packages for elderly people than they did three to four years ago with the “paltry” £240 million promised by government, Labour has said.

Twenty-four of the 111 local authorities that responded to Freedom of Information requests said the funding will not be enough to bring homecare back to 2014-15 levels, according to new analysis by the party.

Labour is calling on Chancellor Philip Hammond to follow its lead today by promising an extra £8 billion for the NHS and social care in today’s autumn Budget to make up for cuts worth £7bn since the Conservatives came to power in 2010.

Health & Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock announced the £240m fund last month, claiming that it would pay for up to 71,500 care packages to ease pressure on hospitals by reducing delayed transfers of care.

Even if all the funding allocated to them were spent on homecare packages, Somerset and Hampshire would be hardest hit as they would provide 2,259 and 1,881 fewer homecare packages respectively than in 2014-15. North Yorkshire, Leicester and Lincolnshire would be providing 748, 636 and 585 fewer packages.

Sixty-eight local authorities said they have seen a reduction in the number of homecare packages since 2014-15.

Shadow social care & mental health minister Barbara Keeley said: “The paltry amount of funding offered up by this government is a drop in the ocean given that £7bn has been drained out of social care since 2010.

“Short-term sticking plasters will not cover the cracks dealt by repeated Tory hammer blows to social care.

“Increasing numbers of older people are struggling to get the care they need to live with dignity, and the NHS is creaking under the weight of delayed transfers of care.

“Older people cannot afford this Tory government just tinkering round the edges. It’s time for the Tories to follow Labour’s lead by pledging to invest an additional £8bn in the Budget.”

Labour calculated the number of homecare packages afforded by local authorities using the average cost of one month’s care at the average hourly cost of £18.01, based on 12.8 hours a week. The number of homecare packages the allocation will cover was calculated using the cost for four months’ care.

OWNED BY OUR READERS

We're a reader-owned co-operative, which means you can become part of the paper too by buying shares in the People’s Press Printing Society.

 

 

Become a supporter

Fighting fund

You've Raised:£ 13,288
We need:£ 4,712
3 Days remaining
Donate today