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"Councils have now reduced the average number of delayed transfers of care days attributed to social care since June 2017 by 40 per cent."

"It is great news that delayed transfers of care attributable to social care have continued to decrease, and testament to the huge ongoing efforts by councils to get people out of hospital and back into the community, close to their loved ones."

The latest ONS figures on alcohol-specific deaths in the UK show there was an 18.6 per cent increase in deaths from alcohol-specific causes in 2020 compared with the previous year and was the highest year-on-year increase since records began.

“These latest figures are another warning of the dangers of regular drinking over a long period of time and the impact this can have on older people."

"As these figures show, more needs to be done to meet increasing demand and a huge amount of unmet need, with more than half a million adults estimated to have alcohol dependency, while a high proportion of those receiving treatment are living in the most deprived areas."

“This analysis reinforces the urgent need to reform adult social care and deliver a long-term sustainable solution."

These stark results are very worrying for councils, care providers and most importantly people who draw on care and support

“Properly funding social care and prevention measures not only helps councils with overly-stretched budgets offer the vital support that older and disabled people need, it also helps to prevent crises and cost pressures in the NHS by reducing the numbers of people who are admitted to hospital. 

Cllr Ian Hudspeth, Chairman of the Local Government Association’s Community Wellbeing Board, responds to a report by the Institute for Public Policy Research calling for a new approach to public health and prevention.

“This report adds to the stark evidence, highlighted by the pandemic, about what keeps people healthy and what else needs to be done to spend more years in good health."