Responding to a report by the Health Foundation about the impact of the pandemic on social care in England, Cllr Paulette Hamilton, Vice Chair of the Local Government Association’s Community Wellbeing Board, said:
“Social care staff have been on the frontline throughout this crisis, doing an incredible job in extremely challenging circumstances to protect those they care for.
“Councils continue to do all they can to support people receiving care, whether at home or in other settings. While we are thankfully past the initial peak of the virus in care homes, it is still concerning that there continues to be excess deaths among those who receive care at home. This could suggest that some are choosing not to go to hospital or receive help elsewhere.
“It is clear that those who use, work and volunteer in these vital services were not given as much priority as the NHS from the outset of this crisis. The Government needs to ensure that councils and social care services have all the resources they need for the weeks and months ahead.
“Social care deserves parity of esteem with the NHS and this needs to be backed up by a genuine, long-term and sustainable funding settlement for adult social care, which we have been calling for long before the current crisis.”
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