'HOMECARE COULD SUFFER'

WHILE welcoming the new coalition Government’s promise of a £2bn boost in adult social care in its latest budget review, the head of one of a leading homecare service providers fears the reduction in overall local councils’ spending might seriously affect the work of those working in the frontline.

Liz Kirkham, pictured right, managing director of Someret-based care providers, Candlelight Homecare Services, which operates throughout Somerset, Bath, Dorset, Wiltshire and Sussex, providing long and short term specialist care, says the 26 percent cut in local authority spending over the next four years could result in care providers not being able to offer career progression or wages and conditions to attract and keep people in the industry.

Mrs Kirkham says the requirement to provide good, quality care and support staff is absolutely critical to companies like Candlelight to deliver services on behalf of the Council’s Adult Social Care department, a section of the industry which is growing at an unprecedented rate.

“If local authorities try to make cuts through adult social care providers, we may not be able to deliver the levels of care required,” she warned.

Candlelight Homecare, which has its headquarters in Glastonbury, looks after and supports clients in Somerset, B&NES, Dorset, Wiltshire and East Sussex.

Mrs Kirkham echoed the views of the United Kingdom Homecare Association, the UK’s leading domiciliary care representative, which questioned whether the Government’s announcement of an extra £2bn for adult social care would reach the frontline services.

With 81 percent of state-funded homecare in England delivered by the independent and voluntary sectors, the UKHCA believes many directors of Adult Social Services will argue that they must continue to make cost savings from their external providers like Candlelight Homecare.

The UKHCA represents 33 percent of independent and voluntary sector providers across the UK and its members provide 1.7m hours of care each week, valued at £1.08bn a year, to 115,000 people.

UKHCA’s chairman Mike Padgham said: “Councils must prioritise spend on adult social care and cut their back-office costs to ensure people receive the maximum support possible, while still allowing employers to reward their workforce adequately for the vital support they supply."

He said the UKHCA is concerned that councils’ downward pressure on price will have a critical effect on the wages paid to the UK’s 340,000-strong homecare workforce.