Reaction to the Conservative Party manifesto

Our Director of Policy Gemma Hope said:

‘While the additional £1billion a year funding for social care is of course welcome, it is a mere sticking plaster given gaps in provision. The system is in crisis following years of underfunding and growing demand for care. We are long overdue a sustainable funding plan for the future.

‘As well as being disappointed by the lack of a full policy proposal on social care in this manifesto, we’re concerned that there is little more than a mention of the care needs of working-age disabled adults. Half of all social care spending goes towards working-age disabled adults, yet a quarter of those who rely on council funding have had their care cut over the last year. 

‘Disabled people must be able to live with dignity and independence, so going forward accessible and affordable care for all working-age disabled adults should be a crucial part of future reform. Efforts to build cross-party consensus to identify a long-term social care funding solution are commendable but we need more detail on how this can be achieved.’

What we're calling for

We are calling on every party to commit to urgently bring forward proposals for a new sustainable funding model for social care, and it is essential that this model includes the following features:

• Commit to ensuring the care and support needs of working-age sick and disabled adults are central to any plan for change, as well as older people.
• Ensure social care is free at the point of use. The risk of paying for care should be pooled across the whole adult population, with care being free at the point of use.
• Social care must be accessible to those who need it. 
• There must be an independent, standardised national eligibility threshold and assessment process for social care.
• Eligibility to receive care should sit at the ‘moderate’ level.
• More practical and financial support should be made available for unpaid carers.