Last Updated on November 21, 2016
Four in five local authorities in the UK report not having enough care for older people in their area, according to new research from Family and Childcare Trust into shortages in care.
The Family and Childcare Trust’s Older People’s Care Survey, funded by Legal & General finds that more than 6.4 million people aged 65 and over are living in areas with shortages in care, meaning that they do not have enough care to meet demand.
Shortages in care are greater among certain types of care. While 84% of local authorities in the UK said they had enough availability for care home places, that figure falls to 48% for home care, and 44% for extra care. Most concerning, shortages are biggest among care for the most vulnerable older people: just 32% of local authorities report having enough nursing homes with specialist dementia support.
Families navigating the older people’s care system must also cope with wide regional variations in availability. While only 57% of councils in the North East reported having enough older people’s care to meet demand in their area, that figure drops to 7% in Outer London.
Families funding their own care could find themselves lost without a compass due to the current lack of information. Local authorities responding to the Family and Childcare Trust’s Older People’s Care Survey reported large data gaps regarding the numbers of self-funders in their area and the fees self-funders pay to providers. Nearly 3 in 4 local authorities in the UK were not able to provide data on the rates that self-funders pay.
Where information was available, UK averages calculated by the Family and Childcare Trust show that self-funder fees for all residential types are 20% more expensive than fees paid by local authorities. At the average cost of £16 an hour for 21 hours a week of at home care, it will take a self-funder just over 1 year to go through £20,000 worth of savings.
Claire Harding, Head of Research, at the Family and Childcare Trust, said, 'It is inexcusable that vulnerable people are left unable to find the care that they need.
'We urge Government to make sure there is enough care for everyone who needs it. In order to do this, we need robust data on where there are gaps in care, a funding system that truly meets the cost of providing care, and clear information for families. Without these steps, families will continue to struggle to find care and to meet the numerous care costs on their shoulders.'
Janet Morrison, Chief Executive of Independent Age said, 'This survey exposes how serious a struggle it is for so many families to now find and pay for care for an older relative. Perhaps more worrying still, the study shows it is a family's postcode that so often dictates what experience they will have when it comes to identifying suitable care.
'Many families are hard pressed to meet the costs, which, remarkably, vary by over 40% depending on what part of the country they happen to live in. The Prime Minister has talked about the need to do more to help British families who are just about managing to get by. There can surely be no better test of the Government's commitment to helping these families than in social care.'
Other key findings from the first Older People’s Care Survey into shortages in care include:
- The average yearly rate for one residential care place in the UK funded by a local authority comes to £27,113.
- Local authorities in inner London face the steepest funding rates for residential care for older people at £649 a week per place – 40% higher than the cheapest regional funding rate for residential care of £464 in North West England.