18th June 2020

Covid-19 Care Provider Impact Study JUNE 2020 Update

The SME’s are the largest part of the social care sector and the most vulnerable.

The providers who run SME’s have invested their own time and money to build up innovative care devices to meet the needs of some of the most vulnerable members of our society and many continue to work alongside their workforce to support their residents.

This survey show the impact of two decades of underinvestment by government to support social care as a whole. The needs of the residents our members support are complex and verge on healthcare proportions. During the pandemic providers have had to create mini hospitals and upskill their staff to include healthcare task as a rapid response to the needs of their residents.

There have been feelings of utter despair as providers tried to access PPE and their calls for rapid testing to become available took too long to materialise. Funding released by central government was insufficient for the local authorities to disperse in any meaningful way to the social care providers.

This is proof, if it was needed, that vulnerable people in care services have been let down by the state whilst providers have continued to support them despite the barriers they faced. Many providers now face issues of financial instability which could result in provider failure.

If the state fails to understand the impact of their lack of understanding and support for social care the percussions will be catastrophic for the people we care for and those who will need support through the coming years.

Nadra Ahmed OBE, Executive Chair of National Care Association said:

“We call on National government to wake up and smell the coffee. SME’s are the heart of communities across the country providing care and support to vulnerable citizens. Our role has always been to support local NHS services and local authorities to provide solutions for those who need care and support - it is time for government at all levels to support us.

We are ready and willing to find and create solutions to ensure our social care services are the best in the world. What we need now is for politicians to understand the importance of all that we do”.

ENDS