On 4 April, the Government The Government are the people who run the country. The Government decide how much tax people should pay and how things like the National Health Service (NHS) should work. announced that it was only going to deliver half the funding initially promised for the social care Social care means the services that give care and support to people who need it. 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 Advocacy is when you get support to have your say. and Activism Activism is taking action to make change. Going to a campaign A campaign is when people work together to try to change something. event with others, writing letters and speaking up are all ways to take action. at learning disability A learning disability is to do with the way someone's brain works. It makes it harder for someone to learn, understand or do things. 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 A White Paper is a report that is written by the government. It talks about new rules the government wants to make. 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."