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Age Concern has welcomed the promise today of a people-centred approach and £2 billion extra pounds for social care announced by the Liberal Democrats.

The commitments came in Empowerment, Fairness and Quality in Health Care – the first policy to be launched by new leader Nick Clegg who was today discussing care issues with older people at Age Concern Kingston. 

The Liberal Democrats plans detail the fundamental reforms they see needed in social care including making the funding system fairer, improving the quality of care and ensuring care is available where and when it is needed.

The Liberal Democrat’s approach is based on the partnership model proposed in the Wanless report  in which the Government would pay for a minimum standard of care for everyone according to need, without regard for their means.  There is also a heavy emphasis on both the use of individual budgets to give those needing care more control and on support for unpaid carers.

Age Concern Director General Gordon Lishman said:

“We support the people-centred vision outlined by the Liberal Democrats today.  This represents an important contribution to the debate about how to remedy the scandalous failure of the current social care system in England.  It is also very welcome that the Liberal Democrats recognise that any serious answer to this question will involve substantial additional costs.”

“The extension of individual care budgets, a policy supported by the three main parties, can ensure that giving people the money to purchase their own care can help them regain control of their own lives so long as they receive proper support and advice. It is an important step but not the sole answer to the crisis facing social care.”

The Government is considering a fundamental reform of the care system and has announced that it is preparing a Green Paper which is expected to be published later in the year.

The key issues that Age Concern is calling on all parties to address in a widely supported reform of the social care system are:

• The quality of care must be improved in order to ensure that older people have their independence, rights and dignity respected.
• Older people must have better access to care, including support in their own homes.  Preventative care will help people remain independent and may reduce healthcare and care home costs.
• If government is to share the responsibility and cost of caring with older people and their families, the system must be fairer and more transparent.  It should be easier and more worthwhile to prepare for needing care.

ENDS

Notes to Editors:

¹ Securing Good Care for Older People: Taking a long-term view, Derek Wanless, King’s Fund, 2006

Social Care Facts and Figures

• The number of people in the UK over the age of 85 has risen from 896,000 in 1991 to 1,280,000 in 2007 and will increase further to 4.2m by 2056.
• Although living longer is something to celebrate many will also experience longer periods of ill-health in later life, even with moderate improvements in the nations health and health care treatment the number of people needing care is set to increase dramatically.
• The number of people receiving support from social services with care at home or in care homes has dropped significantly during the same period.
• Putting aside the need for reform, Age Concern has estimated that care budget need to increase by between 4.0 and 4.5% in real terms each year simply to keep pace with demographic changes.  The last Comprehensive Spending Review did not deliver anything like this level of additional resources for social care.
• Age Concern is the largest organisation in the UK working for older people.  Everyday we are in touch with thousands of older people, enabling them to make more of life. Our services include information and advice, befriending, day centres, lunch clubs, transport services, home visits, and advocacy services. More information can be found on our website.