http://www.londoncouncils.gov.uk/policylobbying/healthadultservices/soci...
Mon, 20/12/2010 - 1:42pm
Our aim: London Councils seeks to act on behalf of the local authorities in London to highlight the specific needs of local authorities as they fulfil their statutory responsibilities to provide adults social care. London Councils also works with others to raise awareness about the particular health challenges present in London.
The Government’s Spending Review announced on 20 October 2010 an extra £2bn to be funded nationally by 2010-2015 to support the health sector provide services. This is designed to ensure that adult social care is protected from the overall cuts in local authority funding. There is also an extra £1bn in annual funding for the NHS to support joint working between health and social care.
Cuts to personal social services
London Councils is concerned that local authorities are being placed in a difficult position around the funding of social care. Despite suggestions of an increase in funding for social care, London Councils estimates that funding will in fact fall by £1.8 billion over the Spending Review period, making it extremely difficult for councils to protect front line services.
Read our briefing on cuts to Personal Social Services
Further information about the government’s spending review announcement can be found in a London Councils Spending Review briefing contained below.
Social Care in London and England - Expenditure and Needs
London Councils commissioned LG Futures to undertake research comparing current and future projections of spending on adult social care in London and the rest of England. The report aims to identify the main cost drivers in London to understand what this might mean for the funding and provision of adult social care going forward.
Comparing London and England spend per head – key findings
- In 2008/09, spending on social care net of charges in London was £2.287bn, which accounted for 33 per cent of the total net budget requirement of councils in London.
- London accounted for 17.2 per cent of net social care spending in England in 2008/09.
- London spends 46 per cent per head above the England average on older people’s (aged 65 and over) social care and 20.3 per cent per head above average on younger adults’ (aged 18-64) social care.
- Importantly, London’s spending is considerably greater than the England average despite the high level of efficiency and effectiveness of services in the capital.
Social care in london and england – expenditure and needs
Further information
Social Care in London and England, Summary and full report – London Councils report by LG Futures, November 2010
ADASS response to Spending Review, ADASS
Government’s Spending Review, London Councils’ briefing
Policy Exchange: Careless Lest We Forget Long-Term Care for the Elderly, July 2010
related pages
PDF version
Our aim: London Councils has been working to support local authorities in London as they work together with other partners, including NHS London and their PCT partners in order to bring health and adult social care services closer together.
Health and Adult social care is inextricably linked; good social care prevents the need for healthcare services and reduces both required length of stay and re-admission into hospital.
An integrated delivery of health and social care will substantially reduce costs in a number of different ways. The better coordination of services and information will reduce duplication of effort for the staff.
London Councils working with NHS London
In May 2009 the Leaders’ Committee considered a report on the development of healthcare commissioning in London shape developments in commissioning to better fit our vision of future health care.
Discussions following this report led to the creation of the London Health Integration Board. LHIB membership comprised chief executives of London boroughs and PCTs, officers from London Councils and NHS London and senior professionals from a range of related services. In early 2010 two events provided a catalyst for further acceleration in work on integrated commissioning.
In January NHS London published its strategic plan projecting a deficit of £3.8 billion to £5.1 billion by 2016/17. This intensified the need to provide care earlier and with less need to resort to more expensive hospital care pointing to a greater role for joint commissioning across the NHS and local government social services.
In February, London Councils launched the Manifesto for Londoners, proposing that the non acute care budgets of PCTs should become accountable to the borough in which they operated with boroughs joining up care budgets to provide integrated commissioning.
A small number of borough and PCT chief executives were asked to develop options for accelerated integration of commissioning between London boroughs and PCTs. Three options were produced reflecting different approaches and different levels of ambition: strategic partnerships, integrated management and integrated leadership.
Ruth Carnall and John O’Brien wrote jointly to London Borough and PCT Chief Executives to invite them to undertake self assessments of their current joint working arrangements and where they aspired to be in the future, based on the three options described above.
A full response was received with 27 boroughs and PCTs providing full submissions despite its optional nature and the change in government and in some local administrations happening at the same time. Responses revealed that the assessment process had intensified a surge in joint working that was already underway across many London boroughs.
The key findings from this exercise can be found at the website link below:
Further information
London Councils’ Leaders Committee report, May 2009
related pages
http://www.londoncouncils.gov.uk/policylobbying/healthadultservices/inte...