The LGA's media office provides the national voice of local government in England and Wales on the major issues of the day for national, regional and local press.
Responding to announcements about adult social care and public health in today’s Spending Review, Cllr Ian Hudspeth, Chairman of the Local Government Association’s Community Wellbeing Board, said:
“The coronavirus crisis has demonstrated the crucial value of councils’ adult social care and public health services.
“Extra funding for children’s and adult social care will help address some short-term pressures, but we need a clear plan on the future of care and support and how we pay for it, which recognises low pay in the adult social care workforce and finally delivers parity of esteem with
“Councils have done an incredible job getting people sleeping rough off the streets and have accommodated more than 29,000 people who have faced homelessness since the start of the coronavirus pandemic."
Vital public health services such as drug and alcohol treatment, early years and school aged support, weight management and sexual health services need urgent investment in the Spending Review if the country is to fully recover from the effects of the pandemic, councils say today.
"Homecare workers have not been able to access the same level of testing as their colleagues working in care homes, so this announcement should redress this balance. The further rollout of these tests to live-in carers and personal assistants also needs to happen as quickly as possible."
“It is critical that that the Government uses the Spending Review to provide significant investment so councils can continue to support their employees as much as possible and recruit and retain the staff needed to provide the local services that are delivered every day by our hard-working staff, alongside care workers and NHS colleagues.”
“It remains extremely worrying that with infection rates and deaths from coronavirus continuing to increase during this lockdown, the test and trace system is still only picking up six out of every ten contacts of people who tested positive."
Responding to the Centre for Ageing Better’s ‘State of Ageing in 2020’ report, Cllr Ian Hudspeth, Chairman of the Local Government Association’s Community Wellbeing Board, said:
“This latest report is another important warning that the impact of coronavirus could have far reaching consequences for everyone, from all ages and backgrounds.
“Councils play a crucial role in improving and maintaining their residents’ health and wellbeing, including for older people. During this incredibly difficult period, councils want to continue doing all they can to ensure our older people have access to the
The LGA said the Government and NHS must utilise the knowledge and experience of directors of public health when it comes to distributing a potential COVID-19 vaccine.
"Local health protection teams have reached 99.1 per cent of contacts who were asked to self-isolate, compared to 59 per cent of close contacts managed either online or by call centres."
With mental health inequality in the spotlight, we respond to this recent report and the essential role councils play in improving their residents’ mental health and wellbeing.