Councils social care spending up by 10% in real terms
Government data has revealed local authorities spending on adult and children’s social care is due to rise by 10% for the second consecutive year.
Figures from the Department for Levelling Up (DLUHC) show funds are forecast to increase from £2.1bn to £24.5bn in 2024-25 – a rise of 9.2% after taking inflation into account. These figures follow an increase of £2bn (10% in real terms) during 2023-24. What’s more, children’s services seem to be the worst affected as the data demonstrates spending has increased by 11% in real terms, taking planned expenditure to £14.2bn in 2024-25.
In addition, the research highlights the key pressure areas in children’s social care are the costs of placements, with spending on the care system accounting for two-thirds of the £1.4bn rise.
Against this backdrop, council leaders have accused some larger providers of children’s home ‘profiteering’ from the situation – an idea accepted by the government – which has prompted a group to be launched on how this issue can be addressed.
Whilst it seems the children’s sector is struggling more, it’s not to say adult social care have gotten off lightly. The DLUHC data demonstrates that in adult social care, pressures include two consecutive increases of just under 10% in the national living wage, increasing pay for several hundred thousands of care staff but requiring substantial rises in the fees councils pay providers.
Nevertheless, with the General Election just around the corner, social care experts are hoping that the next leader of Downing Street will introduce measures that help ease financial strains on social care. However, researchers have pointed that politicians plans could have repercussions on councils’ funding pots.
For example, Labour leader, Keir Starmer, has pledged to introduce a fair pay agreement for adult social care staff and both Labour and the Conservatives have plans to change the social care charging system in October 2025. But, the latest IFS think tank report outlined that leaders failed to include details on how these measures will be funded in their manifestos.
‘Paying for any of these plans would require some combination of tax rises, higher borrowing or cuts to other areas of public spending,’ the report read. ‘The limited tax-rising powers to councils, who cannot borrow to cover day-to-day spending, mean that if central government did not fully cover the costs of social care reform, councils would need to cut back other spending.’
Image: Josh Appel
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