The Government has set out a two-year plan for reform of the adult social care system in ‘Next steps to put people at the heart of care’.
However, the LGA has said reductions in previously earmarked funding for reform, including for the care workforce and housing transformation, are “disappointing”.
‘Next steps’ follows the Government’s 2021 White Paper, which set out a vision for the next 10 years and provided information on funded proposals for three years.
Cllr David Fothergill, Chairman of the LGA’s Community Wellbeing Board said: “This publication illustrates the complex web of different pots of funding that have been allocated to support adult social care – some allocated to councils often with specific conditions, some via the NHS, and some to be spent nationally.
“This is not the way to get best value from the available resources.
“The plan to invest in workforce skills and digitisation is necessary for the reform of social care but not sufficient to deliver the changes that are needed to invest in prevention and recovery and address low pay and unmet need.
“It is disappointing that only £700 million of the previously announced £1.7 billion has been allocated in this paper and that the investment in the workforce has been halved, and a planned allocation to housing is gone.
“This is a significant watering down of promises, which, even as they stood, would only have taken us on the first steps towards a more sustainable and refocused future for social care.
“We are calling for the £600 million that is yet to be allocated to be clearly ringfenced for social care and given to councils, without additional conditions, to help address immediate care needs in communities.”