LGA responds to Which? research on the cost of paying for a care home place

“This research is yet another example of the need to raise the awareness of social care and the cost of care with the public, which is why the LGA is calling on the Government to lead a national campaign to heighten the profile and reputation of adult social care.

“Our recent polling shows half of people have little or no understanding of what social care means. Only 15 per cent of people polled said they are making plans to pay for their care in later life, so it is no wonder people underestimate the cost.

“If we are to truly tackle adult social care, we must aspire to social care having a similar ‘national treasure’ status as the NHS, with similar levels of awareness and understanding about what social care is and why it matters.

“With low public awareness of social care and people’s preparedness for how to pay for it, it is more important than ever that the Government get on and publish their green paper, start a massive campaign to raise awareness of what social care is and don’t duck the big issues on funding. We need bold solutions and we need them now.”

Notes to editors

Polling information breakdown

• BritainThinks conducted a nationally representative survey of 1,741 English adults aged 18+. The survey was conducted online between 28-30 September 2018 and weighted to be nationally representative by age, gender, region and SEG.
• Results are available upon request.
• Half (50 per cent) of English adults say that they have never thought about how they will pay for care when they get older, with only 15 per cent saying they have made any plans for how they will pay for this care.
• Half (48 per cent) of English adults say that they have little to no understanding of what the term ‘social care’ means.
• 44 per cent of people think that social care is provided by the NHS (with a further 26 per cent who didn’t know if it was or not) and 28 per cent think that it is free at the point of access – with significant proportions also saying that they don’t know whether these are the case.
• More than a quarter of adults (28 per cent) say that it is true that social care is free for everyone who needs it, as it is paid through the tax system, with a further 28 per cent unsure whether this was the case or not.
• Those from the highest social grades (AB) are most likely to say that they are making plans, with a quarter (24 per cent) saying that this is the case. This compares to 12 per cent of those in the C1/C2 social grades and 10 per cent of those in the DE social grades.

LGA adult social care green paper

• The LGA’s green paper is available here. The consultation closed on 26 September.
• The LGA will respond to the findings in a further publication in the autumn, which will be used to influence the Government’s own expected green paper and Spending Review.