Reforming adult social care in England

Public Accounts Committee Closed Inquiry
Opened: 13 Dec 2023 Closed: 28 May 2024 Parliament page
The Government promised to “fix the crisis in social care” in 2019. In June 2021, the Committee’s ‘Adult social care markets’ report found that the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) had poor oversight of the system, and seemed complacent about the risk of market failure. The report called … Read more
12 Recommendations
15 Conclusions
1 Report
1 Oral session
2 Letters
1 Event
Activity timeline 6 events
28 May
2024
Report published
20 Mar
2024
Report published
19 Feb
2024
Correspondence
6 Feb
2024
Correspondence
24 Jan
2024
Oral evidence
24 Jan
2024
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · The Grimond Room, Portcullis House
Oral evidence sessions 1 session
24 Jan 2024
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Reforming adult social care in England
Catherine Frances · Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Michelle Dyson · Department for Education Sir Chris Wormald · Department of Health and Social Care
Title HC No. Published Items Response
Twenty-Second Report - Reforming adult social care in England HC 427 20 Mar 2024 27 Responded
Recommendations & Conclusions
4 results
Clear
15 Recommendation Deferred
Twenty-Second Report - Reforming a…
Fragmented, uncertain short-term funding stifles long-term planning and investment in adult social care.
We have reported before on the prevalence of short-term, one-off funding for local authorities and recommended that government explore ways to provide greater confidence over long-term funding.31 With regard to adult social care, this lack of financial certainty has constrained … Read more
Government Response
The government states the recommendation is implemented, explaining they are learning from reforms and monitoring funding impact to inform future spending review preparations. They commit to working with HM Treasury and DLUHC to ensure the next spending review delivers a sustainable funding package for Adult Social Care, while seeking to provide as much certainty as possible.
HM Treasury
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16 Recommendation Deferred
Twenty-Second Report - Reforming a…
Delayed local government finance settlement omits minimum wage provisions for councils.
We asked about the local government finance settlement for 2024–25, noting that the longer the settlement is delayed, the more difficult it is for local authorities to prepare their budgets. DLUHC told us that in 2022 it had set out … Read more
Government Response
The government states the recommendation is implemented, affirming its commitment to providing as much certainty as possible for local authorities through future spending reviews. They are learning from current reforms and monitoring funding to inform preparations for the next spending review, aiming to deliver a sustainable funding package for Adult Social Care.
HM Treasury
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17 Conclusion Deferred
Twenty-Second Report - Reforming a…
Multi-year funding settlement for adult social care remains uncertain for local government.
We challenged the Department on whether we were ever going to see a multi-year funding settlement for local government and if the extra money for adult social care in 2023–24 and 2024–25 would continue into future years. Both the Department … Read more
Government Response
The government agrees and recognizes the value of multi-year funding, noting the 2021 Spending Review provided three years of funding. However, it defers the decision on future multi-year settlements for adult social care, committing to work with relevant departments to ensure the next spending review delivers a sustainable funding package.
HM Treasury
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25 Recommendation Deferred
Twenty-Second Report - Reforming a…
Department lacks long-term funded plan and milestones for its social care vision
The NAO reported that the 2021 white paper set a 10-year ‘vision’ for transforming adult social care, but that the Department had no long-term funded plan for achieving it and no milestones beyond the end of the current Spending Review period, March
Government Response
The government states the recommendation is implemented, highlighting progress towards the 10-year vision and learning from reforms to inform future plans. They commit to working with HM Treasury and DLUHC to ensure the next spending review delivers a sustainable long-term funding package for Adult Social Care.
HM Treasury
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Government Response AI assessment · 23 of 12 classified
Accepted 16
Accepted in Part 1
Acknowledged 1
Deferred 4
Rejected 1
Total 12 recs + 15 conclusions
Correspondence 2 letters
19 Feb 2024 Correspondence from Shona Dunn, Second Permanent Secretary, Department of Health and Social Care, re Public Accounts Committee Hearing – 24 January 2024, dated 6 February 2024
Parliament page
6 Feb 2024 Public Accounts Committee hearing: Reforming Adult Social Care in England, 24 January 2024
Parliament page