Responding to the government's white paper for social care
reform, People at the Heart of Care, Nuffield Trust
Deputy Director of Policy Natasha Curry said:
“The white paper for social care in England published today by
the government is a first step towards much-needed change to our
broken system. The proposals go further than the narrow focus we
have seen so far on costs of care and protecting assets and set
out a long-term vision but gaps still remain.
“We have been here before. There are positive signs, however the
government must now rise to the challenge and back up words with
the cash and bold and urgent action to pull social care back from
the brink and deliver this vision.
“There is a question about how thinly the funding committed to
these proposals will be stretched. The money allocated must fund
the cap on costs and higher means-testing, as well as make care
fees fairer, and support providers of care at risk of collapse.
Beyond the initial three years of the levy, it also heavily banks
on the actions of future governments and the assumptions that
funding raised can be diverted from the NHS to social care.
“The sector is in the grasp of a deepening workforce crisis,
losing as many as 42,000 staff
in the last six months, but with no proposals to
significantly address low pay, the strategy to tackle these
urgent challenges remains uncertain. There are already long
waiting lists for care and councils are already struggling to
meet growing needs.
“Reform has been dodged for so long that we now find ourselves in
a tough starting position. The white paper today can not be
another missed opportunity to address social care properly and
provide real improvements for staff, carers and people who need
support now and in the future.”
