Coalition launches care funding campaign

Public services union UNISON is one of the members of a new cross-party alliance campaigning for a major funding package and fair wages for low-paid care staff.

The Future Social Care Coalition, whose other members include former ministers, the National Care Association, the Care and Support Alliance (which includes Age UK, Carers UK, and the Alzheimer’s Society) says an immediate £3.9 billion emergency support fund is needed from the government to get the care sector through the pandemic’s second wave. The money would also guarantee a significant wage boost to all social care employees in England.

In a letter to the chancellor, the group says Covid-19 has magnified problems that have existed in the sector for years and stresses the need for government intervention.

Workers on the “forgotten frontline” are existing on poverty wages and zero-hours contracts, it says, adding that a substantial increase in resources for the care sector is needed now, along with a long-term solution guaranteeing affordable care for everyone who needs it.

The letter urges the chancellor to find the resources to bring about change in social care. This would allow the sector to begin to be treated with the same respect as the NHS, and develop a comprehensive workforce strategy with better training and pay.

https://www.unison.org.uk/news/press-release/2020/11/time-fair-wage-social-care-workers-forgotten-frontline-says-new-coalition