Social care reforms 'doomed to fail' without considering cost of a 'broken' service

An independent commission, led by Baroness Louise Casey, began last week to address deep-rooted challenges within the system.

This is described as a "once-in-a-generation" chance to transcend party politics and build a consensus for reform, with hopes pinned on transformation.

But MPs today, in the cross-party Health and Social Care Committee, warn the Government must first measure the threat of inaction if it is to build a case for change.

"Without this we fear that the reforms that come out of the commission will be doomed to failure, leaving everyone continuing to suffer under the current unsustainable system," MPs said.

In Yorkshire, care providers now call for action without further delays.

Today's report sets out a series of recommendations, calling for frank findings around the state of failure and the impact on the NHS.

Taxpayers are currently paying £32bn a year for a "broken system”, it warns, and yet there is too much of a fearful emphasis on the cost of change.

It also highlights the enormous efforts of unpaid carers, propping up the sector, while to invest instead would drive growth, it argues, returning £1.75 for every £1 spent.

And it warns of the resulting pressures on local councils of the status quo, as funding pots are plundered to make up the difference.

MPs today call on the Government to produce a growth strategy, fundamentally challenging how it views the sector to see it as an "enabler" rather than a drain.

Research must now be commissioned, the report outlines, to count the cost of continued inaction, while data must show the tally of unmet care.

Chairman of the Health and Social Care Committee, Layla Moran MP, said: “Successive governments have shied away from implementing meaningful reform. But this is an active choice that is no longer tenable. We are living with a broken social care system."

Inaction is harming those who need care, the NHS, and the wider economy, she warned.

"But there is another side to the coin. The social care sector is rarely, if ever, discussed as a driver of economic activity, but it has enormous potential.”

Mike Padgham, chair of the Independent Care Group (ICG) which represents care providers across York and North Yorkshire, said the Casey report must prove a "catalyst for action".

With concerns over timelines for action, the ICG warned reform is already 30 years overdue, and cannot wait any longer.

"Social care has been pushed to breaking point—underfunded, overstretched, and too reliant on the goodwill of unpaid carers," said Mr Padgham. "That’s neither fair nor sustainable. We must not wait years to act on what we already know.”

And, backing the report, the ICG adds the economic potential of social care is being squandered. Mr Padgham said: “Social care is an engine for economic growth, job creation, and healthier communities. But that potential is being ignored. Let’s see action on social care now without further delays."

Responding to the report, Care Minister Stephen Kinnock said: “We are grateful for the committee’s work and will respond formally in due course.

“Far from inaction, this Government has hit the ground running on social care," he added, citing the Government's Plan for Change. “A lot has been done, but we know there is so much more to do and deep reform is needed. That’s why we appointed Baroness Louise Casey to lead the independent commission.”