Urgent need to address systematic failings and stabilise the social care sector in England Health Foundation response to Age UK report, ‘The Health and Care of Older People in England 2019’

Charles Tallack, Assistant Director for Health and Social Care Sustainability at the Health Foundation, said:
 
‘As Age UK have highlighted, there is an urgent need to address systematic failings and stabilise the social care sector in England. Action on this cannot be delayed and we have estimated that an additional £1bn must be made available in the spending round for next year – with £4.4bn committed by 2023/24 – to secure the system against collapse. But this is just a sticking plaster. 
 
‘Beyond this immediate need, the government must also act to establish a fairer social care system that improves access and protects more people against the catastrophic care costs they currently face. This shouldn’t just be an aspiration. Successive governments have ducked the issue for too long. The government should now act quickly to create a system that is fit for the future. Creating such a system is relatively affordable, costing less than 1% of total government spending.’

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