Solutions to adult care funding crisis mooted in CC Live debate

Community Care Live speakers mooted a range of options to fill the £6bn long-term adult social care funding gap identified by the government, in a session yesterday.

Sarah Pickup, co-chair of the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services resources network, said the sector should consider forming partnerships with financial and insurance companies to develop products to help people fund their care needs affordably.

Meanwhile Stephen Burke, chief executive of older people’s charity Counsel and Care, suggested a levy on all estates on death, across the whole population, to pay for long-term care services.

This week, the prime minister launched a six-month consultation on the future of adult social care, prompted by predictions that public funding on adult care will have to rise from £12.7bn in 2007 to £24.1bn in 2026 and £40.9bn in 2041 because of mounting demand.

Financial sector

Pickup, director of adult social care at Hertfordshire Council, said: “We need to face up to the cost, and we may need to consider working with partners we may not have worked with before from the financial sector on things like care bonds, equity release and social insurance.”

She urged audience members to take part in the government’s consultation on care and support, which will culminate in a green paper on reform next year.

“We need to contribute to the debate, not just as professionals but as citizens,” she said. “This is a once in a generation opportunity to get involved in a debate that will affect how many of us will be treated in the future.”

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