Over 4 million older people being failed by social care system, research finds

More than 4 million older people are living in areas where there is not enough social care to meet demand, new research has found.

According to a report by Coram Family and Childcare, a third of local authorities expect the situation to get worse over the next year, compared with just 1% who expected the climate to improve.

Megan Jarvie, head of Coram Family and Childcare, said: “High quality care for older people can help to improve their wellbeing and stay well for longer.

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“But the gaps in care that we have found are likely to cause stress and hardship for older people and their families.

“Fixing our care system is an opportunity to support older people and their families to lead happier, healthier lives and to reduce the strain on the NHS.”

Only half of local authorities (51%) said they had adequate home care services, with just 42% of areas reporting they are able to meet local demand for more severe care needs such as dementia.

The report found that large parts of the sector were “unlikely to be sustainable at the current rates of local authorities pay”, despite average prices increasing at an above inflation rate of 4% last year.

The Trust called on central and national governments to address the long-run strategic challenge of reforming care and funding to make sure that every older person has access to the care they need, when they need it.