Providers claimed that funding was challenging to access and had multiple conditions attached.
The report detailed rising costs such as energy cost increases of up to 350% and unfunded rises in the National Living Wage, leaving 40% of adult social care providers in deficit in 2023. The report notes particular concerns, with 84% of care providers saying that recent funding initiatives from the Government – such as the Market Sustainability and Improvement Fund and International Recruitment Fund – made no difference to the financial sustainability of their organisation over the past year.
The result has been a reduced capacity to deliver care across providers, as:
- 43% closed services or handed back contracts
- 18% offered care to fewer people
- 39% considered exiting the market altogether
The report concluded that short-term sporadic funding measures, rather than a long-term sustained strategy, could drive these issues. HFT and Care England have called on the Government to implement immediate measures to support the care sector – including improving commissioning practices, revising VAT arrangements and removing barriers to ethical international recruitment.
Mikey Erhardt, DR UK Campaigner, said:
"We all have the right to live in an inclusive society where everyone has a fulfilling life and feels connected and valued. We know our lives are not valued equally to others, and more service reductions will cut us off from our communities, prevent us from getting the care and support we need, and ultimately may cut many of our lives short, all in service of a spreadsheet somewhere in Westminster.
For many of us, the social care system is central to enabling us to live independent, fulfilling, active lives we have a right to. This report makes clear that slapdash funding commitments made on a whim are not good enough. As part of the Disabled People's Manifesto, we are asking for much deeper changes - and much more funding (8bn to be exact!) to transform our system and ensure that we all have access to care and support to enable us to learn, work, have fun and make social connections."