Somerset Council has welcomed plans to reform social care, but urged the Government to act faster.
It was announced on Friday 3rd January 2025 that the Government has commissioned an independent review which promises to identify critical issues facing adult social care, set to be published in 2028.
The first phase of the review will be published in mid-2026 and is said to identify critical issues facing adult social care and will make recommendations for medium term reforms before the final report is published.
Today’s announcement comes more than four years after Somerset played a crucial role in shining a light on the pressures facing social care by opening its doors to the BBC’s Panorama team.
The resulting two, hour-long ‘Crisis in Care’ films helped put the need for social care reform on the national agenda and highlighted the need for a national plan for a sustainable social care system.
On this news, Somerset councillor Sarah Wakefield, Lead Member for Adults Services, Housing and Homelessness at Somerset Council said: “We are pleased to see that the Government acknowledges that radical reform is required properly to support adult social care services in the United Kingdom.”
“We have been calling for reform of adult social care funding for a long time and been a national standard-bearer on this issue, so it is reassuring to see that adult social care is on the Government’s agenda. However, we are concerned that the proposed timelines are simply too long. We need reform much faster and in line with the timeline proposed for the Government’s ten-year Health Plan.”
“Somerset has one of the fastest aging populations in the country. By the time the final report comes out in 2028, predictions say that nearly one-third of our county’s residents will be aged 65 and older. Additionally, our adult residents with learning and physical disabilities will increase as individuals currently supported by Children’s Social Care turn 18.”
“We already know that already announced increases in employers’ national insurance will have a detrimental and potentially devastating effect on our care provision in our county and that immediate financial investment is essential if we are to stabilise our adult social care provision.”
“As such, we ask that the Government use the forthcoming Spending Review to address the further deterioration of adult social care provision in the short-term.”
“Although the report will be welcomed, and it is encouraging to see the proposal of a National Care Service in the longer-term, the vital need for adult social care services in our county is here and now and 2028 is far too long to wait if we are to continue giving people the social care support they need, want and deserve in Somerset.”
The Panorama team spent ten months following Somerset County Council staff, showcasing Somerset’s inspiring social workers, family carers, care providers, health colleagues and voluntary and community organisations helping support thousands of people in the county.
For more background on Panorama’s Crisis in Care programmes click here.
