Adult placement schemes hit by council cuts

Adult placement services are facing cuts with some councils freezing new placements and the recruitment of carers.

The warning came from Naaps, the body which represents adult placement schemes, otherwise known as Shared Lives services, in which vulnerable adults are placed with families.

In its monthly bulletin to members, Naaps chief executive Alex Fox said: “In some areas there appears to be a temporary ban on new arrangements or on the recruitment of carers, which is threatening the morale and productivity of affected schemes.”

He said bans on new referrals would run counter to the government’s ambition to increase choice in social care while freezing the recruitment of carers would not make savings.

However, speaking to Community Care, he said the evidence of cuts was so far anecdotal and many services were waiting for councils to set budgets.

Fox pointed to evidence that Shared Lives schemes reduced costs for councils by enabling them to cut spending on more expensive placements in care homes.

He added that one council had set up a Shared Lives service because it saw it as a way to cope with the current squeeze on public spending.

The news follows announcements of plans to increase charges for adult care users by several councils and warnings that vital Supporting People services for vulnerable adults face cuts.

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