Social care waiting list gets longer as almost 300,000 wait for care

Almost 300,000 people (294,353) are waiting for urgent social care assessments, care or reviews in England and this figure has risen by over a quarter in the last three months alone, say council directors.

The shocking figure is based on a poll by members of the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services (ADASS) which reports that up to 184,062 are waiting for reviews of existing care and support plans.

At least 70,000 people are waiting for an urgent assessment of their care needs (up from 55,000 at the time of the ADASS Spring Survey 2021). Some 11,000 people have been waiting for over six months for a care needs assessment.

Stephen Chandler, ADASS President, said: “Having heard the Government’s initial thinking about the longer-term future, this survey is a stark reminder of why we need investment in care and support now.

“It is neither fair nor acceptable that people are waiting longer and getting less care. People need care and support to live a good life now. They cannot, and should not be made to wait.”

More home care hours delivered but demand still rising

ADASS reports a ‘significant’ increase of four per cent in the number of home care hours delivered in local authority areas. This has risen from 13,835,304 hours from 1st February to 30 April 2021 to 14,425,882 hours from 1 May to 31 July 2021.

With rising requests for care in people’s homes and concerns about the recruitment and retention of care staff, ADASS says people with care needs are waiting longer, receiving less care, or the wrong type of care.

Some 13 per cent of people are being offered support such as residential care due to recruitment and retention issues, that they would not have otherwise chosen, adult social care directors in local authorities reveal.

Adult social care directors say the current workforce issues could be address with more funding, ‘better recognition from the Prime Minister and ministers of the equal value of social care staff alongside their NHS colleagues’ and the extension of the workforce grant across the remainder of the current financial year.