LGA welcomes delay in delivering personal care at home

The House of Lords’ vote to delay the introduction of free personal care at home until April 2011 is a practical step forward, council leaders said today.

Tabled by LGA President, Lord Best, with cross-party backing by Lord Warner, Earl Howe and Baroness Barker, the amendment to delay the new arrangements by six months, gives councils sufficient time to plan and budget properly for this new service.

Cllr David Rogers, Chair of the Local Government Association’s Community Wellbeing Board, said:

“Understandably, there will be many families with concerns regarding this delay.  Councils are committed to providing the best possible level of care for all their residents.  This amendment  means that councils now have the time to ensure that the new personal care package is delivered smoothly and efficiently from day one.

“Councils believe that the proposed October start date is unrealistic and puts them in two very difficult situations.  Firstly, local authority budgets for the next financial year have already been set and given that this Bill is still proceeding through Parliament, many will not have budgeted for it – already, some councils are warning that they anticipate the cost to triple the government’s estimate.

“Secondly, councils have very little time to fully prepare for implementation. The government’s national assessment tool is not going to be ready until early summer, leaving councils with little time to fully test the system and make the necessary administration changes.

“There is also growing concern that sufficient time is not available to develop the new IT system required to support such a service.  To do everything in just six months is unachievable.

“Councils wants to keep people living in their own homes for as long as possible and are investing in services such as Telecare to help delay the onset of major health problems. This saves council taxpayers’ money in the long term, at a time when funding for services is tight”.

Implementation was scheduled for 1 October 2010 at an estimated cost of £670m in a full year. Councils are expected to provide £250m from efficiency savings with the remaining £420m being funded by central government.

Cllr Rogers continued:

“The LGA has long called for council and NHS social care spending to be more closely aligned and having the Department of Health part-fund this commitment is a positive step which is important to get right”.