One in four English postcode areas have no care provision – study
I suspect many of these areas in rural settings in England. We still appear (in these Brexit fixated times) to have no real sense of how to deal with the huge challenge presented by Adult Social Care.
A study commissioned by Age UK found that large swathes of the country were “care deserts” lacking residential care or nursing homes.
Caroline Abrahams, the charity’s director, said the research showed how “chaotic and broken” the market for care had become after years of underfunding. “If the awful situation set out in this report does not persuade our government to finally get a grip and take action, I don’t know what will,” Abrahams said.
The study, conducted by Incisive Health, an independent health consultancy firm, found that more than one in four postcode areas in England – 2,200 out of around 7,500 – had no residential care provision. Two-thirds (5,300) had no nursing homes, for people with more acute problems.
The report said more than 1.3 million over-65s lived in these areas and risked being unable to get support if they needed it.
The study found that a big driver of the problem was a lack of staff. Vacancy rates for nurses in social care rose to 12.3% in 2017/18. The report said staffing was a particular problem in the south-east, and that high numbers of EU staff in the sector, many of whom have left or are planning to leave, could mean extra disruption from Brexit.