Nearly 70% of the public think that social care is in a poor state, a survey conducted by the GMB Union has found.
Additionally, three quarters of the public support a tax increase to pay for adult social care. Just 7% oppose tax rises to pay for social care, with 59% supporting a reverse to tax cuts, such as corporation tax, to pay for it. Furthermore 86% believe carers should be well paid and trained, with 83% saying that pay should reflect the highly skilled and increasingly complex nature of care work.
‘Our social care system isn’t just in crisis – it’s crumbling around our ears. A third of carers leave the profession every year while funding is woefully behind what is needed,’ said Kelly Andrews, GMB National Officer.
‘Throughout our lives, we will all come into contact with care - be it our mums and dads needing help, working as a carer or knowing someone who does. Ultimately we will all need it ourselves. The dedicated carers we all rely on need the pay and training they deserve.’
Social care is seen as one of the most critical areas of the public sector in need of funding. According to health think tank the King’s Fund, just to get back to the levels of access to help that existed in 2009-10 would cost at least £8 billion a year in England alone. Boris Johnson pledged to address the crisis in his first speech as Prime Minister.
‘My job is to protect you or your parents or grandparents from the fear of having to sell your home to pay for the costs of care,’ said Mr Johnson.
‘And so I am announcing now – on the steps of Downing Street – that we will fix the crisis in social care once and for all, and with a clear plan we have prepared to give every older person the dignity and security they deserve.’