Baroness Louise Casey is expected to accuse successive governments of failing to take responsibility for England’s social care system.
Speaking at the National Children and Adult Services Conference on Wednesday, she will say the sector has ‘no one in charge’.
In a speech to social care leaders in Liverpool, Casey is expected to call for a ‘new settlement for care’, arguing England has never had a concrete plan for how the sector should be run.
A report by the Nuffield Trust and the Institute for Government, commissioned by Casey’s review, found responsibility for social care was scattered across government departments, local authorities and private providers.
It said there was no ‘system stewardship’ for care, with decision-making often unclear and progress on reform slow.
What’s more, the research displayed private providers had come to dominate the sector in a way that was largely unintended. More than 1.5 million people work in social care in England, across about 19,000 employers.
England is also the only UK nation without a compulsory register of care workers.
The way people access care varies considerably depending on where they live. The report said different standards, assessment processes and waiting times meant people could have very different experiences of the system.
Casey is expected to draw comparisons with countries including France, Germany and Japan, where social care has clearer arrangements for national oversight.
She will also refer to the Covid pandemic, when care home residents and staff were left without adequate protection.
The Covid-19 Inquiry found social care had been treated as an ‘afterthought’. Its report said patients were discharged from hospitals into care homes without knowing whether they had the virus, leaving vulnerable residents exposed.
More than 43,000 people died from Covid in UK care homes between March 2020 and July 2022.
In a letter to the inquiry’s chair, Baroness Heather Hallett, Casey said she was ‘deeply horrified, but unfortunately not surprised’ by its findings.
She is expected to say: ‘The Covid-19 Inquiry took apart the argument that a ‘protective ring’ had been thrown around care homes during the pandemic. Many old people died without their loved ones by their side. Many care workers left their jobs after what they had seen.
‘It is a national shame that this was allowed to happen. It should never happen again.’
Casey will call for a ‘new settlement for care’, based on what she describes as shared values of decency, contribution and a duty to care for others.
Currently, the government has plans for a National Care Service, with Andy Burnham among those pushing for reform of the sector.
However, research from the commission, which is due to make its recommendations next summer, notes just reorganising the system won’t be enough without proper political commitment and resources.
Image: Shutterstock
In related news:
94% of stroke patients miss out on recommended rehabilitation
Leave a Reply