The Provisional Local Government Settlement has been published setting out the government's proposals for local government funding for 2025-26. The proposals are now subject to a four week consultation. While there is more funding for social care than previously expected this still falls short of what's needed. According to ADASS a further £1bn is needed to fit the gap for adults social care just to stand still.
Some of the key proposals relevant to VODG members include:
- a further £200 million in the Social Care Grant to address pressures, taking the total uplift in the Social Care Grant in 2025-26 to £880 million
- an uplift to the Children’s Social Care Prevention Grant, a new grant announced at the policy statement, to £263 million. This uplift will be reflected in allocations at the final settlement and will make funding available for Family Group Decision Making;
- £515 million of new funding to support councils with the costs associated with the increase in employer National Insurance Contributions (NICs). Allocations will be based on 2023-24 Revenue Outturn data and published at the final settlement. A methodology note has been published as part of the provisional settlement to help authorities plan for how much they can expect to receive. It is down to councils to decide how this money is spent - predominantly to cover their own costs associated with NICs and wage increases, but this can be passed on to the services they commission from other providers.
- Local authorities with social care responsibilities will again be able to set an adult social care precept of up to 2% without a referendum.
- £2.6 billion will be distributed through the Local Authority Better Care Grant. This is a single grant, which consolidates the previous Discharge Fund (£500 million) into the grant which was previously the improved Better Care Fund (iBCF) (£2.1 billion). Like its predecessors this grant will be required to be pooled into the Better Care Fund (BCF). The objectives and conditions of the BCF will be set out in the 2025-26 BCF policy framework, which will be published shortly.
- £1.05 billion in 2025-26 will be distributed for adult social care through the Market Sustainability and Improvement Fund (MSIF).
Our response
In response, Dr Rhidian Hughes, Chief Executive of the Voluntary Organisations Disability Group (VODG) says:
‘While the provisional local government settlement offers a slight increase in funding for adult social care than was expected, it still falls far short of what’s needed to cover the impact of the budget, let alone future proofing services after decades of under investment.
‘Despite the catastrophic impact of increases in national insurance contributions and wages on disability services, there was very little assurance that the essential support millions of people rely on, delivered by the third sector on behalf of councils will be supported in the way it so desperately needs. Disability charities have been very clear – if the full costs of the budget are not met, they will be forced to cut services. The Minister has said it is down to councils to decide how best to spend the money given to them, but they face significant challenges of their own.
‘If councils do not adequately pass the funding on via sufficient uplifts, the services they commission will at best need to drastically cut support and at worse, cease to exist. They are in no position to take these services on themselves, and disabled people, families and carers will not have the care and support they need. This is simply shunting costs to the helath service and crisis provision, undermining the government’s priorities for the NHS and national care service.’
ENDS
- VODG commissioned independent analysis by Corids Bright on the impact of the budget to disability charities, this found that one in three disability charities are poised to handback local authorities charities unless the impact of NICs and NLW increases are fully funded.
- The Care Provider Alliance, of which VODG is a member, published a survey of over 1180 care and support organisations. Findings included 73% of organisations will have to refuse new care packages from local authorities or the NHS and 76% of providers will have to cut training and resources for staff.