News

Properly funded preventative services would mean councils, working closely with partners and people drawing on support, can maximize the impact of their resources and address community needs. This will also drive down demand for more expensive acute health and social care support.

Councils are facing unprecedented financial challenges, with the increases to employer National Insurance Contributions likely to add significant costs for councils and the wider sector.

“Councils are facing severe funding and demand pressures, meaning finances are under strain like never before. With a vast majority of councils now struggling to balance the books, the costs from National Living Wage and employer National Insurance increases announced in the Budget must be fully funded."

Without immediate investment and a long-term funding strategy, the situation will only deteriorate. Ensuring adequate resources to support working-age adults equally must be a government priority.

This important annual report further evidences the critical challenges facing services which support the health and wellbeing of people across our communities.

The LGA recognises the important findings of the Dash report. We value our constructive relationship with the CQC and are committed to supporting improvements, including defining consistent benchmarks for service quality.

Councils are calling on the Government to take immediate and decisive action to tackle the adult social care workforce crisis, as a new report reveals huge challenges in recruiting and retaining staff.

The Local Government Association is calling for the scrapping of single word ratings in Care Quality Commission assessments of councils’ adult social care services, following the decision to end single word ratings in Ofsted inspections.

Councils are calling a long-term care workforce plan, alongside immediate investment in adult social care to tackle the urgent issues affecting services.

The adult social care sector remains in a precarious position and despite councils’ best efforts to make progress on the issue, more than 400,000 people are still facing a wait to be assessed, for their care package to commence, or for a review of their care plan.