Social care services for thousands ‘under threat’ due to budget measures

Essential adult social care services for thousands of people have been threatened by measures in the chancellor’s budget, it has been claimed.

Employers’ raises national insurance contributions and the national living wage will be out of reach for many organisations, leaving them struggling to provide care, charities say.

Community Integrated Care, one of the UK’s largest charities in the sector and employing 6,000 front-line staff, said it was facing a “threatening” increase of £12m – an increase of 6.2% – of unfunded costs as a result.

Its chief executive, Jim Kane, said: “The the chancellor’s budget will put many social care organizations for adults at risk, threatening essential services for thousands of people with care and support needs in the UK…

“Urgent action is needed. We hope this outcome is not intentional and we urgently call on the Chancellor to review the budget’s impact on the social care system, particularly for charity providers.”

Mr Kane said the Government needed to give local councils the resources to increase levy levels in social care contracts to cover the extra costs or give providers an exemption from national insurance grow.

It comes after the government scrapped a £1.1bn plan to reform welfare shortly after coming to power.

A total of £600 million was allocated in Wednesday’s budget for social carebut critics said it was unlikely to be enough amid a recruitment and retention crisis in the sector.

Not-for-profit care providers and hospices employed by the government to provide public services are not exempt, although public sector charities are.

The National Care Forum, which represents not-for-profit organisations, said the budget appeared to be being carried out against the insistence of the health secretary. Wes Streeting that a properly functioning adult social care system was needed to support the NHS.

Its chief executive Vic Rayner said: “Far from heralding a new dawn for social carethis historic budget appears to do little to recognize the vital role that social care plays in the lives of millions of people up and down the country.

“Adult social care providers will be particularly hard hit by the government’s planned changes to employers’ national insurance contributions.”

Ms Rayner added: “It seems clear that this Budget will not even deliver the desperately needed stabilization that every report, inquiry and select committee has called for.

“Nor is it reassuring that this is a government committed to ensuring that social care is understood, prioritized and invested in as a public service that changes people’s lives.”

While many in the sector welcomed higher wages for staff, they warned it should not come at the expense of the services they provide.

Hospice UK has called on the Treasury to introduce exemptions for organizations that provide healthcare services on behalf of the NHS.

He said: “The increase in national insurance for hospices makes it all the more important that the government commits to urgent short-term support for our sector, as well as long-term reform of how hospices are funded.

“The Health Secretary has recognized the challenges we have, with a majority of hospices’ income coming from charitable donations, not the taxpayer.”

The Treasury has been contacted for comment.