The Homecare Association welcomes the insights provided by the ADASS Autumn Survey 2024. The survey highlights the critical role of homecare in supporting people to live independently in their own homes, while also showing the significant challenges facing the sector.
Failure to ensure adequate funding for local authorities and homecare risks a decline in care quality, increased staff turnover, and reduced capacity to meet growing demand. Our recent report on fee rates highlights a stark disconnect between the rising costs of providing care and the fees paid by local authorities and the NHS, potentially leading to a crisis in homecare provision. The Autumn Budget announcements have only further compounded this.
The Homecare Association urges the Government to act on ADASS’s recommendations. Investment in adult social care will tackle immediate issues and promote economic growth.
Dr Jane Townson OBE, CEO of the Homecare Association, said:
“Today’s ADASS survey findings confirm our gravest fears about the sustainability of social care. ADASS reports 81% of councils are already overspending and face unprecedented savings targets. This means council fee rates are unlikely to rise enough to cover increases in provider costs. The Autumn Budget’s changes to employers’ national insurance contributions (NICs) and the minimum wage risk pushing many homecare providers over the edge.
“This perfect storm of council underfunding and increased employment costs will force providers to make impossible choices. We’re already seeing evidence of care visits being shortened; non-compliance with the minimum wage; providers exiting contracts; and providers ceasing to trade. For those remaining, the combination of underfunding and increased costs may encourage a shift towards unregulated care.
“The government's rhetoric about ‘home first’ and improving care workers’ conditions rings hollow when only 1% of councils can pay sustainable rates for homecare. We already face a £1.08 billion funding deficit in homecare alone. These additional pressures will make it impossible for many providers to maintain quality services while meeting their statutory obligations. This risks harm to individuals; higher demand for GP and other primary care services; an increase in NHS waiting lists; greater pressure on councils; and devastation of an already fragile homecare sector.
“We urge the government to exempt homecare providers from the NICs changes and provide proper funding for the minimum wage increase. Without immediate action, we risk the collapse of regulated homecare services in many areas, with devastating consequences for the older and disabled people who rely on them and additional pressure on an already struggling NHS.”
ENDS
Notes to editors
- The Homecare Association is the UK’s membership body for homecare providers, with over 2,200 members nationally. Our mission is to ensure that homecare receives the investment it deserves, so all of us can live well at home and flourish within our communities. The Homecare Association acts as a trusted voice, taking a lead in shaping homecare, in collaboration with partners across the care sector. It also provides hands-on support and practical tools for its members. The Homecare Association’s members agree to abide by the Association’s Code of Practice.
- Local Authorities and the NHS fund 79% of homecare services. Staffing comprises 70-80% of costs of care delivery. Unlike other businesses, care providers cannot increase prices because public bodies dictate these.
- Homecare Association report reveals critically low fee rates for state-funded homecare.
Contact
Daisy Cooney – Head of Policy, Practice and Innovation
E-mail: [email protected]
Telephone: 020 8661 8160
Mobile: 07435 910654
