Adult social care continues to face ‘intense pressure’ as governments fail to implement reforms, according to a new report by a leading think tank. ‘Social care 360,’ by the King’s Fund found that adult requests for social care have hit a record high of two million, but the vacancy rate is still at its second highest-ever level at 9.9% since 2012/13.
‘For decades, social care reform has been promised by governments but consistently dodged or delayed. The latest figures make clear that the sector is showing little sign of improvement, leaving thousands of people without the support they need,’ said Simon Bottery, senior fellow at The King’s Fund and lead author of the report.
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The report stated that the vacancy rate in social care continues to be much higher than other sectors despite the arrival of around 70,000 overseas workers. Vacancy rates in adult social care are higher than in the NHS (8%) and much higher than in other areas of the economy, such as retail (2.9%), education (2.6%) and manufacturing (3%).
Local authorities are also facing ‘severe financial pressures,’ with the bill for purchasing care continuing to rise faster than inflation. The average fee for working-age adults has increased to £1,540 from £1,400 since 2015/16, while the weekly fee for older people increased from £670 to £840.
The King’s Fund has called for the Government to increase funding to enable care providers to attract, retain and train staff, and implement reforms to make the system fairer and improve quality and outcomes for services users and their carers.
Responding to the report, the Department of Health and Social Care said it is ‘fully committed’ to improving the social care system and has made up to £8.6 billion in additional funding available this financial year and next.
‘We are also helping to attract and retain care workers, including by supporting their career development through a range of new funded training schemes and, for the first time, a clear career path through a new accredited qualification,’ said an official from the department.