There is a 'conspiracy of silence' over social care reform, warn campaigners

Campaigners for the elderly have accused Labour and the Conservatives of a “conspiracy of silence” over social care reform.

They hit out at the “refusal” of the two main parties to address the problems of social care in the general election campaign.

And they warned “short-term thinking” will cost the country more in the end.

The backlash comes with just a week left until polling day.

While both parties have slugged it out over tax, the economy and immigration, very little time has been given to solving the UK’s social care crisis, the Silver Voices campaign group for the over 60s said.

Their warning comes as a Silver Voices petition, backed by the Daily Express, demanding a national strategy to end the crisis nears 15,000 signatures.

Campaigners say urgent action is needed to stop the suffering of thousands of older people every year.

Malcom Stephenson, a Silver Voices member, said his mother, Rita, had to sell her home to pay the “astronomical costs of residential care” after being diagnosed with dementia.

The former NHS worker ended up paying £150,000 over the four years she was in the care home.

Sadly, she passed away in 2021 at the age of 96.

Mr Stephenson, has thrown his weight behind the joint ‘Stop Homes Being Sold To Pay For Social Care’ petition on the Change.org website.

“The social care system is in urgent need of radical reform, which keeps getting put off,” he said.

Dennis Reed, Director of Silver Voices said: “Providing social care support at home is much cheaper than older people occupying expensive hospital beds.

“It is also healthier for the patients to have the security, mental well-being and mobility which comes from adequate home support.

“Delayed discharges are a financial millstone round the neck of the NHS, and it will not be possible to reduce waiting lists and times significantly without sorting out the social care crisis first.

"Reform of social care could release billions for improvements in the NHS, without the need for extra taxation.

“We are sadly disappointed by the refusal of the two main parties to address the problems of social care in this General Election campaign. More short-term thinking will cost the country more in the end”.

Silver Voices says providing better social care support at home would save the NHS billions of pounds.

The campaign group says the standard cost of occupying a hospital bed is £400 a day, whereas the average cost of social care at home is £30 per hour, with most people only needing 2-3 hours’ help per day.

It warns that the crisis in social care is so great that charities estimate that 2.6 million people are not getting the social care support they need, and many older people die waiting.

Many older people in this position also end up in hospital because of falls, accidents, infections, malnutrition or dehydration directly related to the lack of support.

Currently only those with an income and assets under £23,250 get help with the costs of care at home or in residential and nursing homes in England – the least generous system in the UK.

Adult social care charging reforms - including an £86,000 cap on the amount anyone in England has to spend on their personal care over their lifetime - had been due to be implemented by the Conservative government from October 2023 but were delayed by two years.

The Conservatives have promised to build 100 new GP to help patients get the care they need and relieve pressure on hospitals.

A Conservative Party spokesman said: “The Conservatives are committed to taking bold action to deliver a sustainable and high-quality social care system, and have supported the sector with up to £8.6 billion extra this year and last year which is boosting the care workforce and reducing delayed discharges from the NHS.”

Labour set out plans to create a national care service in 2023, although shadow health secretary Wes Streeting told the Yorkshire Post last week, he would not commit to "jumping straight in with the legislation" in their first term, if they win.

Labour have also pledged to create Neighbourhood Health Centres to allow more care services to be provided locally.

The Silver Voices/Daily Express petition on the need to sort out the social care crisis is available on the following link:

https://www.change.org/p/stop-homes-being-sold-to-pay-for-social-care