Responding to today’s Spring Budget Tim Cooper, CEO of national disability charity United Response, said:

“It is unthinkable that a focus on supporting the labour market ignores the ongoing workforce crisis which is hitting the social care sector.

“This does not have to be a missed opportunity, the Government can and must invest in this vital sector to ensure a sustainable system fit for current needs.

“To reflect the importance of social care the government needs to ensure pay parity between social care and NHS staff and class social care as a special occupation, which would allow people in these roles to work more than 16 hours and still be eligible for benefits. The Government should ensure that agency costs for social care are VAT free, as they already are for the NHS.

“The funding to support young people with special educational needs into work is a welcome step forward in our campaign for an inclusive education, employment and skills system. Nevertheless, as with adult social care, it’s crucial that the Government looks at addressing this as part of a long-term solution to what is a fundamentally long-term problem.”

In our budget submission, United Response is calling for the following key measures:

  • VAT exemptions for adult social care providers on agency staff costs.
  • Review how a cap on overall agency costs could be introduced.
  • Align and uplift social care workers’ pay rates to NHS band 3.
  • Invest in newer, innovative ways to commission and deliver services.

You can read our budget submission in full here.