The Care Quality Commission has released it's State of Care report their annual annual assessment of health care and social care in England.
Commenting on the report. Homecare Association CEO Dr Jane Townson said:
“We are pleased the CQC recognises the seriousness of the risk of unmet need which now faces adult social care. In homecare, demand is rising and many providers are having to turn down new requests for help. Some providers are unable to staff existing contracts and are handing work back. Recruiting and retaining staff is currently more challenging than ever. Inadequate government funding for social care over many years has led to poor pay, terms and conditions of employment and poor commissioning and procurement practices. Pressures during the pandemic have added to staff turnover, and losses could be further exacerbated if vaccination as a condition of deployment is implemented.
We continue to call on the Government to use the Spending Review to invest adequately in homecare. The priority is to ensure homecare workers are paid fairly for the skilled roles they perform, and at least on a par with equivalent public sector roles. The Health and Social Care Levy is a start but is nowhere near enough to address underlying workforce issues.
We must invest to ensure there are enough careworkers to meet needs, so that older and disabled people can live well at home, surrounded by those they love, and connected to their communities.”
