Fearful elderly call for urgent reform in care

BRITAIN’S crisis-hit social care system needs urgent reform according to a huge swathe of the public.

As the Government’s first Budget approaches, a clear message has been sent to Prime Minister Boris Johnson with a poll showing almost half of adults think the sector should be a major priority for ministers .

And 79 per cent of people aged over 70 worry about being able to afford decent care in old age – an increase of seven per cent since last August.

Research seen exclusively by the Daily Express showed social care was the second most important issue to the public, behind the NHS.

Worrying

Reacting to the study by specialist housing provider Anchor, Baroness Ros Altmann, care campaigner and former pensions minister, said: “More and more families are worrying about funding later-life care needs.

“It’s a potentially catastrophic situation for those who find they get no help from the state and have to use their life savings and family home to pay for care.

“The artificial distinction between what counts as a ‘health’ need and what counts as a ‘social care’ need, is clearly wrong.

“If a millionaire has cancer, the NHS covers all the costs. If a widow has

dementia then the state pays nothing towards her care until she has used up any assets, including her house.

“It’s clear the number of people needing care will rise and this survey shows that worries about how to pay for care are also rising.”

Jane Ashcroft, chief executive of Anchor Hanover, said: “The public are rightfully pushing for reform, now counting social care in their top two most urgent domestic policy issues.

“Successive government failures to address the crisis have forced a string of emergency cash injections, as funding pressures deepen.

“We cannot wait any longer for sustainable social care reform. This Budget is an opportunity for the government to deliver on its pledge to fix social care.”

Caroline Abrahams, of

Age UK, said: “Far too many older people are struggling without the care they need, or watching with horror as their hard-earned money disappears into skyhigh care bills. It’s just unrealistic to expect individuals to save for their own care.

Contribute

“We need a government scheme we all contribute to throughout our lives, which means care will be there if we need it in our old age.”

However, there is some good news in the survey.

Since August 2019, confidence that Mr Johnson will reform social care is up from 31 per cent to 38 per cent.

Anchor Hanover surveyed 5,413 people, including 1,509 aged over 70.

FOR too long social care in this country has been a Cinderella issue – neglected and under-funded. Successive governments have paid lip service with a blizzard of unfulfilling consultations – including the latest Green Paper, which has been delayed an outrageous five times. But little has happened.

Now, with a certain inevitability, the people are restless. A recent survey by housing company Anchor found that half of Britons are demanding that our unfit social care system be urgently reformed.

The survey also found that social care was a huge priority for our citizens – young and old alike – and that an alarming 79 per cent of respondents aged over 70 worry about being able to afford decent care in older age.

Social care raises so many troubling issues, not least the gobbling up of life savings. The UK’s policy response has been iniquitous, with care seen as part of a lifestyle, rather than a health need, and thus privatised.

That said, the public remains optimistic that this Government will deliver on social care reform.

The forthcoming Budget on March 11 will be its opportunity to prove that it has a plan – and it must deliver.