“A Conservative council leader says dozens of social care providers are cancelling contracts with local authorities and instead offering their services solely to wealthy private clients.
Izzi Seccombe, who is the Local Government Association’s spokesperson for social care, said the chancellor needed to take urgent action in the autumn statement to tackle a growing crisis in the sector.
She told the Guardian that a failure by Philip Hammond to plug a multibillion-pound financial black hole would result in elderly and disabled people no longer receiving help to get dressed, showered and fed.
“The challenge is we are underfunded and the concern is that if we cannot bridge those gaps with some funding through the autumn statement, we will not be able to address the needs of people who are vulnerable,” said Seccombe, the Tory leader of Warwickshire county council. She said people would instead have to turn to their GPs or local hospitals for help, resulting in a larger cost to the taxpayer in the long run.
Her comments come alongside a written warning to Hammond that councils across England and Wales are facing a £5.8bn funding gap by 2020. A document submitted by the LGA suggested there would be a serious squeeze on spending for social care, children’s services, homelessness, local parks and libraries. …”
East Devon Watch 