Confirmation the government has cut hundreds of millions from budgets partly designed to boost health and care integration has been met with fury, with the decision described as leaving the social care reform agenda in ‘tatters’.
It was revealed last month that the £1.7bn promised in 2021’s social care white paper to strengthen the sector, and especially its contribution to more integrated services, was set to be drastically cut by ministers.
Today’s announcement has confirmed the investment originally ear-marked for “investment in knowledge, skills, health and wellbeing, and recruitment policies [to] improve social care as a long-term career choice” has been cut from £500m to £250m, the £300m promised to “integrate housing into local health and care strategies" cut to zero. The white paper also promised “at least £150m” for investment in digital and technology, but today’s government announcement has capped this at £100m. Overall cuts to the series of reform programme are in the region of £600m. Only £520m has been allocated, and it is unclear where the rest of the original £1.7bn will be spent.
Sarah McClinton, president of the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services, said the plan “takes us backwards” and “leaves the government’s vision for reform in tatters”, adding that it “ducks the hard decisions and kicks the can down the road again until after the next election.”
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Source: HSJ, 4 April 2023
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