Social care spending £600m lower than 2010, TUC analysis finds

New analysis by the TUC has found that social care spending is still £600m lower than in 2010 despite repeated promises by the Prime Minister to “fix the crisis in social care once and for all”.

In a report into the sector published today, research showed that spending per head is 8% below the level in 2010 and that regional cuts range from 18% in London to 5% in the South East, East Midlands and East of England.

The TUC has said that the insufficient funding has forced councils to restrict eligibility for support, meaning that people are increasingly left to rely on informal care from friends and family.

The organisation also argued that “in a time of rising unemployment, social care could provide a steady source of new decent jobs”, and called on the government to “act now to unlock 120,000 existing vacancies, to help those losing their jobs”.

The report revealed that almost 25% of social care workers have a zero-hours contract, seven in ten are paid less than £10 per hour, that the sector has around 120,000 unfilled vacancies and an annual staff turnover rate of 31%. It called for:

• A new funding settlement;
• Immediate funding to fill all social care vacancies;
• Fair pay and conditions for care workers;
• A national social care forum;
• A reduced private sector role; and
• A universal service free at the point of use.

Commenting on the contribution made by care workers in the pandemic, TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady said: “When the country needed them, social care workers stepped up.

“Care workers looked after older and disabled people in the midst of a pandemic, often without the right personal protective equipment, and often for low wages and no sick pay.

“Now it’s time to fix the broken system. Social care is badly underfunded. Pay and conditions for care workers are dreadful. And families can’t be sure of high-quality, affordable care when a family member needs it.

“As we face mass unemployment, ministers should act to unlock the 120,000 existing social care vacancies right now. And they should put investment in social care at the heart of our national recovery plan.

“Social care jobs should be decent jobs on fair pay, at the heart of every community. The TUC’s plan sets out how a full funding settlement for social care would work. Ministers can’t spend another decade hiding from the social care crisis.”

A report under the last Labour government warned that if no action were taken then the cost of social care would double within a decade, but plans to introduce a national care service in the UK were shelved by the coalition government.

Boris Johnson told the public in his first speech as Prime Minister in July 2019 that he would “fix the crisis in social care once and for all”. He also said on June 30th that the ministers were “finalising” plans.

10 Downing Street rejected reports over the summer that the government is considering a move to make people aged over 40 pay more in taxes to contribute towards the cost of social care amid the escalating crisis in the sector.

A group of more than 30 councils and charities called in July for the government to publish a timetable for changes to the sector, with a “radical rethink” of social care, before parliament returned in September. No plan has been announced.