“It is difficult to offer words of hope and motivation when the past 12 months have seen the adult social care sector engulfed in a sustained state of crisis.
Despite moving away from the immediate challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, in 79% of cases, local authority fees did not cover the rising cost the National Living Wage.
There has been little respite from the fundamental financial and workforce pressures that have faced our sector for many years. As in previous years, the majority (71%) of care providers surveyed for this year’s report were in deficit or experienced a decrease in their surplus in 2023.
It is abundantly clear that challenges associated with the cost of living are still considerably impacting the sector, with providers seeing utility bill increases of up to 350%.”
Professor Martin Green OBE, Chief Executive, Care England