Social Care Costs for Disabled and Working Age People to Hit £17 Billion by 2030, Say Councils

A general view of staff on a NHS hospital ward at Ealing Hospital in London, England, on Jan. 18, 2023. PA Wire/PA Images

The costs of providing social care for disabled working age adults and those with life-long disabilities could hit £17 billion by 2030, the County Councils Network (CCN) has said.

Analysis by the CCN published on Monday estimated that the cost to local authorities in England in 2023/2024 for these groups hit £10.9 billion. This represents 63 percent of all adult social care support, despite these people only making up around 40 percent of all adult social care service users.

The CCN, a group which represents 36 councils in England serving 26 million residents, said that the rises are due to the complexity of individuals’ needs, an increase in placement costs, and “inappropriate and insufficient” housing options.

Martin Tett, CCN spokesman for adult social care, said that higher spending and inappropriate housing “is bad for councils and even worse for care users who see their independent dramatically reduced.”

The new Labour government said it recognised the state of adult social care and plans to launch a community-based National Care Service, which will take a home-first approach to social care, supporting people to live as independently as possible while also receiving high-quality support.

Tett said that the National Care Service “risks being an empty slogan unless it is backed with a renewed focus on working age adults, and significant increase in funding for councils to meet rising costs and ensure the quality and safety of support is maintained.”

Rising Costs

Councils in England are responsible for providing adult social care for working age adults and those over 65 with lifelong physical and mental disabilities and older. This can include residential and home-based care, both of which make up the majority of adult social care spending.

CCN’s analysis found that the cost of supporting working age adults and those with a lifelong disability had increased by nearly a third (32 percent) from £8.3 billion in 2019 to £10.9 billion last year, becoming the “largest area of expenditure in adult social care” and far outstripping the £6 billion spending on over-65s with a physical disability or dementia.

Further, it indicated that 18- to 24-year-olds account for 13 percent of current expenditure on working age and lifelong disabled adults, worth around £1.4 billion a year.

The report said that although the majority of the increased number of young people with Education, Health, and Care Plans (EHCPs) will not be eligible for adult social care support, “it is expected that expenditure on support for 18–24-year olds will grow by at least 40 percent by 2030 as a consequence of increases in SEND and population growth.”

The report said that increased spending is driven by the complexity and type of care people are receiving—rather than an increase in the numbers of people in these groups needing this support.

In its analysis, the network said that weekly expenditure per individual has increased by 31 percent between 2019 and 2024, from £565 to £735.

Finding appropriate accommodation was a common problem reported by councils, with local authorities often using limited 24-hour residential and nursing placements because there were not enough housing options, with some saying they were forced to use costly out-of-area placements to meet local needs.

Reform

The CCN said that without reform, these costs will reach £17 billion by the end of the decade. The network called on the government to increase funding for councils to meet these rising costs and review funding arrangements.

It also called for greater focus on independent living and closer alignment between the education and employment sectors to improve opportunities for these people.

Responding to the report, a government spokesperson said that the National Care Service “will improve the quality of care for working-age disabled adults across the country.”

The spokesperson continued: “The Chancellor has announced at least £600 million of new social care funding, as well as an £86 million increase for the Disabled Facilities Grant, which are part of a wider package to bolster support for councils.

“We are also committed to reforming Jobcentres to provide better employment support and make health-related benefits more flexible, making it easier for people to move into paid work.”

Council Spending Crisis

The analysis comes amid long-standing financial difficulties being faced by local authorities, which has seen councils accumulate debt and some even announce effective bankruptcy.

Last month, the CCN said that local councils could end up being reduced to little more than care service providers, cutting other vital community services, as they face a £54 billion shortfall by the end of this parliament.

The network said that the financial pressure have been driven by a rising demand in just three areas: children’s services, school transport for SEND pupils, and adult social care. These will account for a combined 83 percent of the total increase set to hit councils by 2030.

Another report from the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services warned last week that over 80 percent of councils in England will overspend their adult social care budgets this year.

PA Media contributed to this report.