Executive Summary
HM Government published a Carers Strategy in June 2008 which contained a commitment that £150m would be given to Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) in England to provide breaks for carers.
£50m would be given in 2009/10 and £100m in 2010/11. In the words of the Prime Minister, this would “double” the provision of respite care for carers. Using Freedom of Information requests The Princess Royal Trust for Carers and Crossroads Care have found that only 23% of this year’s £50m has been used by PCTs to increase services for carers.
We have not focussed solely on breaks because we realise that PCTs may have used the money to provide other services which will still be of support to carers. If we had focussed solely on breaks, the percentage of the allocation used to increase services would have been lower than 23%.
We have focussed on measuring the increase of funding for carers’ services between 2008/09 and 2009/10 because the new money committed was intended to increase services for carers, and not just to cover what was already being spent by some PCTs on services for carers.
PCTs were not informed how much of the £50m each would receive. In their own words, this hampered their ability to plan and generally caused a state of confusion amongst PCTs. Nearly 90% of PCTs found the information that we provided useful or partially so, with many specifically stating they wished the Government had provided them with the information.
The National Carers’ Strategy states that PCTs will be “required” to produce joint plans with their local authorities. Despite being half way through the financial year, over 20% of PCTs state that they have not done so and some say they have no plans to do so.
The Minister for Care Services, Phil Hope MP, advised Parliament that it is the responsibility of local MPs and carers to “ensure that it [local PCT] allocates from its budget the money that the Government have allocated to it to support carers in the area.” i It is impossible to do this unless PCTs and the public know what each PCT has received as its share. It would also be necessary for PCTs to be open about the purposes for which they have used the funding. Given the high number of PCTs who did not respond to a FOI request, it is clear that the public would find it hard to gain the information necessary to hold a PCT to account.
Information and transparency are key to enabling local people to hold local decision makers to account.
To avoid similar results regarding next year’s injection of £100m given to PCTs for carers, we call on the Government to intervene so that:
• the amount each PCT receives of next year’s £100m is publicly available;
• PCTs plan their spending with carers, carers’ organizations and the local authority;
• each PCT publicly reports on their use of the money.
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PDF version More than three-quarters of government funding allocated to provide respite for carers has not reached those in need, according to two charities. Of the £50m intended for use this year to relieve the burden on family members and friends who look after dependants, the Princess Royal Trust for Carers and Crossroads Care maintain £40m has not reached the frontline. Much of the money, it is claimed, has been diverted by NHS primary care trusts into other services or used to repay trust debts. In June 2008, the government pledged £150m to PCTs to provide respite care from 2009 to 2011.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2009/oct/13/government-carers-funding
Ongoing research by The Princess Royal Trust for Carers & Crossroads Care is finding that many Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) are not providing breaks for carers with monies given to them for that purpose by the government.
The government’s Carers Strategy announced that £50m would be given to English PCTs in April 2009 to provide breaks for carers.
However, this money was not ring-fenced and PCTs were not told by the government how much of the £50m each was receiving, rather it was slipped into their total allocation without any information.
Nevertheless, it is possible to illustrate how the £50m is distributed across PCTs by assuming that each PCT is getting the same percentage of the £150m as their total allocation is a percentage of the total given to all PCTs.
Since February, we have been disseminating this information publicly and asking The Princess Royal Trust Carers’ Centres and Crossroads schemes what their local PCT is planning to do.
Early indications showed a high degree of confusion among PCTs with some claiming that they had not received any monies and others advising that since it was not ring-fenced it would be used for other priorities.
Gordon Conochie, Joint Policy & Parliamentary Officer for The Princess Royal Trust for Carers & Crossroads Care, says: “Following research carried out by The Princess Royal Trust for Carers and Crossroads Care, we are very disappointed to find that only a few Primary Care Trusts (PCTs) are using all of the money allocated to them to provide breaks for carers.
“Despite the government’s announcement of £150 million for carers’ breaks, PCTs in general have so far failed to prioritise carers’ needs, instead they have chosen to spend the money on other needs or to cover deficits.
“Without these vital breaks, carers can often reach breaking point where they can no longer continue, and their own physical and mental health deteriorates as result. Ultimately when carers reach this point, PCTs will have to provide additional support at additional cost, so failure to provide carers’ breaks is short-sighted.
“Once again, the recognition of carers and their substantial contribution is not seen as a priority. Given that the country’s six million carers already save the government an estimated £67-£87 billion in care costs a year, the Trust and Crossroads Care are calling on the government to address the issue by providing more detailed information and guidance to PCTs on how much of the £100m each will receive for carers’ breaks in 2010/11. We would also like PCTs to publically report on what they have done with their allocation and what services they are providing to meet the needs of carers.”
Some PCTs have not been replying to enquiries from our Carers’ Centres or schemes and therefore we have issued one hundred letters to PCTs asking for information under the Freedom of Information Act (FOI). Other PCTs have not received FOI requests because they are already engaged in discussions about what they will do.
To date, our preliminary findings are:
- 35 PCTs have said that they are not spending any money on carers’ services
- 16 PCTs have said that they are spending part of their allocation on carers’ services
- 6 PCTs are spending all of their allocation on carers’ services
- 26 PCTs have said that they are still in consideration
Although the NHS Operating Framework 2009/10 did include a paragraph asking PCTs to work with their local authority counterparts to produce a plan showing how they would provide breaks for carers, we would like the government to issue more information and guidance to PCTs.
We would also like PCTs to report on what they have done with their allocation and what services they are providing to meet the needs of carers.
http://www.carers.org/news/trust-calls-for-primary-care-trusts-to-fund-r...
Budget cuts of up to 15% to services for disabled children could leave some councils open to legal challenges over the duty to provide short breaks, according to campaign group Every Disabled Child Matters.
Councils have until October to show how they are fulfilling the duty, which comes into force today. However, EDCM has anecdotal evidence that some councils are planning to cut service funding by up to 15% over the next year, prompting concerns that some will be unable to cover local need or fund the new duty.
"This duty will ensure that local authorities and families have a greater understanding of what short breaks services should be provided," said Christine Lenehan, board member of Every Disabled Child Matters.
"However, we are concerned that some local areas are risking a legal challenge by reducing budgets for disabled children's services. We urge local authorities to ensure that they are properly resourced to meet their legal duty with respect to disabled children."
Lenehan added that the government ought to be mindful of the pressure on local authorities' budgets and should consider the issue of resources in the consultation on the special education needs and disability Green Paper.
Charity Family Action, meanwhile, has warned that disabled children could lose up to £1,366 a year under the proposed universal credit compared with the support they receive now through the disability element of child tax credit.
Under the welfare reforms, now going through parliament, families with disabled children would lose up to £16 a week.
Family Action chief executive Helen Dent said: "We're due a child poverty strategy but, with this callous cut, the government is making sure that some of the most vulnerable children will be poorer from the start.
"The government's slash-and-burn approach to support for disabled children will hit some of the most vulnerable and disadvantaged families who rely on this extra support."
The changes will not affect how much disability living allowance families receive.
Related articles
Government toughens duty on councils to offer short breaks
Short breaks to be funded through early intervention grant
28% of councils at risk of legal challenge for short breaks criteria
Welfare Reform Bill will hurt disabled, warn campaigners
http://www.communitycare.co.uk/Articles/2011/04/01/116598/councils-may-f...
The NHS has failed to increase the level of spending on services supporting carers, The Princess Royal Trust for Carers revealed today in a report titled “NHS not making the break for carers”. In November, last year, the Government had allocated an extra £400m over four years (2011-2015) to provide support for carers. However, the findings published today by The Trust and Crossroads Care show that in fact there may have been a small decrease in the support provided to carers.
Moira Fraser from The Trust met with the Health Minister, Paul Burstow, earlier this week to discuss the findings of the report. According to a blog by Gordon Conochie, the joint Policy officer at The Trust and Crossroads, the Health Minister, Paul Burstow, is taking this report seriously and will act to increase the expectations on PCTs. Burstow has the backing of the Prime Minister who had requested an investigation into how PCTs were spending the additional money.
Liz Fenton, Chief Executive of The Princess Royal Trust for Carers, says: ‘We’re glad to see that some PCTs have greatly increased their level of investment in services for carers.
'However, there is a minority of PCTs still not investing anything at all, or a very small amount, in supporting carers. We understand that PCTs are under financial pressure - but strongly caution that failing to support carers does not make economic sense and is morally indefensible.'
The research shows that a vast majority of PCTs have even defied Government by not publishing plans and budgets as was requested. Only 13% of PCTs have published budgets for 2011/12.
According to previous stats from The Trust, only 4% of carers report getting a break in their own home while only 8% get a break away from home.
Anne Roberts, Chief Executive of Crossroads Care, adds: ‘We need PCTs to be upfront and transparent about how they budget their support for carers. We believe the only way local decision making can be effective and fully accountable is if local people, including carers and carers’ organisations, have the information they need to hold their decision makers to account.’
Related items:
Report titled "NHS not making the break for carers"
Gordon's policy blog on "NHS fails to increase support for carers"
Carers are being denied access to tens of millions of pounds of funding, according to new research out today.
Last year, the government announced £150m for primary care trusts (PCTS) in England to finance breaks for those caring for friends and family members.
But many trusts are either unaware of the funding or claimed they had not received any money, a study for three care charities found. Others said since respite care funding was not ring-fenced, it would be used for other priorities.
Carers UK, the Princess Royal Trust for Carers and Crossroads Caring for Carers, also found that some trusts cited budget restrictions for not being able to make any funds available, the charities said.
Of 100 PCTs surveyed, 35 said they were not spending any money on carers' services and 16 said they were spending only part of the funding on carers' services. 26 said they were still deciding. Only six said they were spending the entire amount on respite care.
Carers UK has written to the NHS's chief executive David Nicholson, asking him to issue clear guidance to trusts on providing short breaks. The letter says: "Carers tell us that they are still waiting to see whether the National Carers Strategy will have an impact on their lives.
"In many areas they are very disappointed that the new funding for breaks services, which was one of the headline announcements for the National Carers Strategy, does not appear to have been delivered."
The charity estimates that around six million people are carers in the UK, with more than 1 million providing more than 50 hours of care a week.
Carers UK chief executive, Imelda Redmond said: "Funding has only been available since April and some PCTs may still be putting together plans to implement this policy, but our research shows that in many areas there is no progress at all and little prospect of this improving during 2010/11.
"The money might have been made available on April 1 but the announcement was made in June last year. We would have expected trusts to have plans in place before the funding was released."
The charities called on the government to issue more information and guidance to trusts and for PCTs to report on what they have done with their allocation and what services they are providing to meet the needs of carers.
Other care charities also demanded more action. Stephen Burke, chief executive, Counsel and Care, said: "It is crucial this money actually cuts through the bureaucracy and reaches the frontline to provide urgently needed support to those under huge emotional and physical pressure. Carers who carry out such a valuable role in supporting vulnerable older people must feel confident that when they have a well-deserved break the person they care for has access to suitable and appropriate care and support.
"However, calls to our advice service show that many carers remain cynical about the ability of local authorities and primary care trusts to step in and enable them both to have regular respite care and also assistance in times of emergency. Access to flexible respite care makes a huge positive impact on the lives of carers, their families and the older people they care for. Practical action is needed now including better financial support for carers to ensure that this issue is addressed urgently."
Unveiling the carers support package last June, Gordon Brown said: "Too often carers are unable to access the kind of support which allows them to re-charge and renew themselves, and to address this we are taking immediate action to double our support for respite care over the next two years with an additional £150m of new funding."
Gordon Conochie, joint policy and parliamentary officer for The Princess Royal Trust for Carers and Crossroads Care said:
"Following research carried out by The Princess Royal Trust for Carers and Crossroads Care, we are very disappointed to find that only a few primary care trusts (PCTs) are using all of the money allocated to them to provide breaks for carers.
"Despite the government's announcement of £150 million for carers' breaks, PCTs in general have so far failed to prioritise carers' needs, instead they have chosen to spend the money on other needs or to cover deficits.
"Without these vital breaks, carers can often reach breaking point where they can no longer continue, and their own physical and mental health deteriorates as result. Ultimately when carers reach this point, PCTs will have to provide additional support at additional cost, so failure to provide carers' breaks is short-sighted.
"We would like PCTs to publically report on what they have done with their allocation and what services they are providing to meet the needs of carers."
http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2009/aug/07/carer-break-funding