On 4 April, the Government announced that it was only going to deliver half the funding initially promised for the social care sector.
The Department of Health and Social Care said its “call for evidence in partnership with Skills for Care on a new care workforce pathway and funding for hundreds of thousands of training places, including a new Care Certificate qualification”, would be backed by £250 million, half the £500 million promised in 2021.
Jackie O’Sullivan, Executive Director of Communication, Advocacy and Activism at learning disability charity Mencap said:
"This plan is an insult to a sector that was once treated as a priority for Government. Just over a year ago, The Social Care White Paper laid out the urgent reform needed to enable people to access the care and support they rely on. It has now been diluted beyond recognition. Faced with a deficit of 165,000 care workers, the Government has chosen to cut its plans to recognise and support this workforce. Without this workforce, nothing else is possible: no increase in quality of care can be achieved; no innovative ideas can be realised; and people with a learning disability who rely on social care will suffer. The Government needs to act fast on the real issues like workforce pay, timely access to support and the underfunding of the system, before it's too late."