Social care leaders have raised the alarm over the growing crisis of trust in the social care system resulting from COVID-19.
According to a Policy Exchange and Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) survey, two in five people aged over the age of 65 are now less likely to make the move to residential social care as a result of the COVID-19 crisis.
Among relatives, one third now have concerns about placing a relative.
Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) Kathryn Smith said the crisis of trust is a result of inappropriate hospital discharges, lack of protective equipment and a lack of consistent testing. She said: “What a sorry indictment of what’s happened to social care in just two months or so.
“The message is clear: Intervention is needed now and in the long-term. Then we can start to rebuild the trust that’s been lost”.
The research also looked at people’s views on social care investment, including care staff pay, and on funding methodology, including an NHS-style taxpayer funded system, voluntary insurance and using personal housing wealth.
Four in five respondents to IPPR poll said that if additional funding is given to social care, some of it should be used to increase pay above the minimum wage.
IPPR and Policy Exchange researchers Harry Quilter-Pinner and Richard Sloggett said: “Covid-19 has been a national tragedy. We must use this moment of national grief to build a brighter future.”
