Investing in social care
LAST week we celebrated World Social Work Day in Reading. It was a day to shout about how much we value social workers in our town. They do an incredible job, day in, day out, making an enormous difference to people’s lives, often in hugely trying circumstances and with ever dwindling resources across the sector.
The day of celebration came in a week it was reported that the Government is planning to cut its promised £250 million investment in the social care workforce.
The commitment was made in December 2021 by the Department of Health and Social Care as part of a much-hyped white paper, ironically called People at the Heart of Care.
The same news report claims a further £300m plan to increase the range of new supported housing options will also be quietly dropped.
Ask anyone involved at any level of social care, they will all tell you that recruitment and retention is a massive issue. There are currently an estimated 100,000 vacancies in care across the UK and that figure is set to increase substantially.
Low wages are a big reason why the sector is haemorrhaging care workers to retail or hospitality sectors, to name just two. I firmly believe that caring – a life-sustaining occupation – should not be a minimum wage vocation, which is why we demand that Reading Council’s providers pay at or above the Living Wage Foundation’s real Living Wage.
But wherever you look, care providers are under financial pressure and unless wages are backed up by a realistic and long-term funding commitment by Government for the sector, it may not be sustainable for many care providers.
In the continued absence of a sustainable funding solution on adult social care from this Government, one way we can show how much we value residents, and indeed our social workers, is to invest in modern new facilities.
Earlier this month, council plans to build new affordable homes, an older people’s day centre, sheltered housing for the over 55s, and supported living flats on the site of the former Central Swimming Pool in Reading were approved by the Planning Committee.
The development – just off the Oxford Road on Battle Street – is the most significant investment in modern new adult social care facilities in Reading for many years.
These aren’t just new buildings. They incorporate adult social care support services which can help transform the lives of some of Reading’s most vulnerable people.
Not a million miles away, on Amethyst Lane, the Council is now also pushing ahead with plans to build a modern new respite care facility to support some of the Borough’s residents with complex needs and, importantly, provide much needed respite for their carers.
More than 3,000 residents aged 18 and over have a profound and multiple learning disability. Many are cared for by family or friends. The new facility will provide short-term respite for up to six people at a time. Like our social workers, unpaid carers do an incredible job looking after vulnerable people, many of them 24/7.
It is so important that support like this is in place to give a chance to recharge their batteries.
Sometimes, the gulf between the big talk of national Government and the meaningful delivery by local government is too big to ignore. Everyone wants a care system that works, but we do need our national leaders to get real about the systemic issues. Otherwise, the scale of the challenge risks becomes insurmountable.