More focus is needed on prevention and the funding of adult social care
Every citizen has the right to good health and wellbeing to enable them to make a full and positive contribution to their families, neighbourhoods and wider society.
Councils are uniquely placed to positively influence many of the wider determinants of health, such as housing, education, the environment, economic growth, and skills.
And our responsibilities for public health, adult social care, and as the interface between local government and health, enable us – in partnership with our local communities and stakeholders, including, crucially, people who draw on care and support – to drive forward action to improve and sustain individual and population health and wellbeing.
Too often, though, councils are driving this approach despite national priorities, rather than because of them.
Funding is an important issue, while the ability of local leaders to lead can be hampered by both national directives that stifle local priority setting and a narrow approach to accountability that only looks upward, rather than outward to communities and citizens.
Ahead of the Autumn Statement and in the run-up to the next General Election, the LGA is working on a White Paper for local government, as part of its Make It Local campaign.
This will argue that stronger and more empowered local government could deliver the public’s priorities more effectively and strengthen the value that the public places on the UK’s democratic structures.
In respect of health and care, we believe councils need:
- a relentless focus on prevention and wellbeing to improve population health, reduce health inequalities, help reduce the long-term cost of care and treatment, and maintain sustainable health and social care services
- increased and sustainable levels of funding for adult social care and public health to stabilise the market and help meet current unmet needs
- real freedom for local leadership to focus on what is important for local communities.
The LGA has consistently argued that the current social care and health system is unsustainable, and will buckle unless we urgently invest to protect health, prevent sickness and intervene early to minimise the need for costly hospital treatment and care.
“We need to usher in a new commitment from government to improve people’s lives and bolster public services”
Given the financial challenges across the public sector, providing additional funding is exceptionally challenging.
However, we believe the Government should introduce a ‘Prevention transformation fund’, because it’s clear that, without specific resources for prevention, we won’t see the radical step change required to reduce impacts on the NHS and adult social care.
When it comes to the latter, we welcomed the money announced in the 2022 Autumn Statement (up to £2.8 billion in 2023/24 and up to £4.7 billion in 2024/25), but much of it will be absorbed by pay and inflationary pressures.
It also falls short of what is needed for councils to fully deliver against their Care Act responsibilities, to tackle workforce and market pressures, and meet unmet and under-met need.
The pandemic powerfully illustrated how effective local government, working with its partners, can be in supporting the wellbeing of people and communities.
We need to build on this experience to usher in a new commitment from government to improve people’s lives and bolster public services.
With such a commitment in place, we can create the optimum conditions for strengthening the resilience of individuals, our communities, and our health and care services, and ensuring those services make their full contribution to the economy.
- Find out more about the LGA’s Local Government White Paper and our Make It Local campaign.
- Social Care Minister Helen Whately, Shadow Social Care Minister Andrew Gwynne, and NHS England Chief Executive Amanda Pritchard are among the speakers at the National Children and Adult Services Conference 2023 in Bournemouth, from 29 November to 1 December. Book your place.