Councils increased real-terms expenditure by 7% on adults’ services and 6% on children’s services last year, show government figures, but authorities continue to face significant pressures in both areas
The increase – double that of the previous year (£1.1bn) – came on the back of a significant boost in government funding for the sector in 2023-24.
When adjusted for inflation, net social care spending rose from £35.44bn to £37.78bn, according to data released by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.
Authorities boosted real-terms expenditure on adults’ services by £1.5bn go £23.3bn. This was driven by a £514m rise in spending on older people with physical needs and a £434m boost to expenditure on working-age adults with learning disabilities.
In children’s services, expenditure rose by £821m to £14.5bn after taking account of inflation, predominantly driven increased spending on looked-after children’s services (£644m).
Government funding boost
The increase reflects the impact of boosts to government funding for councils to spend on day-to-day social care spending. This included:
- A £1.36bn real-terms boost to the social care grant, which can be used on both adults’ and children’s services.
- A £475m rise in the market sustainability and fair cost of care fund, designed to help councils increase fees to adult social care providers, cut waiting lists for services and tackle recruitment and retention issues.
- £307m through a new adult social care discharge fund, designed to help speed up hospital discharges.
- Permitting authorities to increase the adult social care council tax precept – whose proceeds are ring-fenced for the sector – by 2% in 2023-24, up from 1% in 2022-23.
- Allowing councils to raise general levels of council tax by 3% without the need for a local referendum, up from 2% the year before.
Social care services doing more but gaps remain
The rise in expenditure appears to have boosted the capacity of social care services, according to published data, though this also highlights the ongoing challenges councils face in social care. Adult social care statistics show that:
- 660,460 were receiving long-term care and support in England as of 31 March 2024, up from 630,445 on 30 April 2023 (source: Department of Health and Social Care).
- There was an 11.1% fall in the number of people waiting for an assessment, care package or review from August 2023 to March 2024 – however, almost 420,000 people were waiting as of 31 March 2024 (source: Association of Directors of Adult Social Services).
- The number of filled posts in the adult social care sector grew by 70,000, from 1.635m to 1.705m, while the number of vacancies fell by 22,000, in the year to March 2024 (source: Skills for Care). However, there were still 131,000 vacancies as of spring this year, equivalent to 8.3% of the workforce.
- Council Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards teams processed a record 323,870 cases in 2023-24, up 12% on the year before, but 123,790 cases were left incomplete at the year’s end (source: NHS England).
Similar data has not been published for children’s services. However, despite the increase in spending in 2023-24, county councils were on course to significantly overspend their budgets for the year, found a survey carried out last autumn. This was driven, chiefly, by the costs of placements for looked-after children.
Further boost to funding in 2024-25
Councils are also significantly increasing social care spending in 2024-25.
Planned expenditure on adult social care is due to increase by 9.2% while children’s services spending is expected to rise by 11%, after taking account of inflation.
This has been enabled by further increases to government social care grants over 2023-24 levels.
However, despite the Local Government Association projecting significant further pressures on the two services in coming years, the new Labour government has signalled that it will take a tough approach to public spending, blaming its fiscal inheritance from the Conservatives.
Planned social care measures scrapped by Labour
This has already seen it scrap the planned cap on care costs and associated reforms to the adult social care charging system and cancel a programme to increase investment in training care workers.
On 30 October, chancellor Rachel Reeves will set out funding levels for local government and social care for 2025-26, with plans for subsequent years being unveiled next year following the current spending review.
