We need a care system that is free at the point of use like the NHS - Andy Brown

One of the best ways to visualise the extent of the problems is to consider what would happen if someone you cared about developed Alzheimer’s to such an extent that they could no longer look after themselves.

If that required you to find them a specialist residential home that could look after them properly then it wouldn’t come cheap. Even those who think themselves relatively well placed financially soon begin to struggle under the pressure of seeing large amounts of money drain away week in week out for years.

It is hard enough to watch someone who once cared for you deteriorating and needing constant support. It is even harder to do that whilst worrying yourself sick over how long you can carry on meeting the financial commitment to provide them with the standard of care that you want them to have.

The consequences for those facing situations like this can be huge changes to their lifestyle as they struggle to find the time to help without neglecting other responsibilities like child care.

For some this means selling a family house and burning through hundreds of thousands of pounds. The blunt facts of inheritance rules in modern Britain are that if you have parents who die quickly and leave you a home then they can pass down a million pounds without the need to pay a penny of tax. If those parents need years of care then you are likely to inherit very little.

Because of that stark contrast the government announced recently that they intended to change the rules. They left alone that astonishingly high tax free limit on inheritance but decided to introduce a lifetime cap on what any individual has to contribute to care costs. The first £100,000 of any reasonable costs of supporting those in need was to come from the family along with any payments for luxury provision such as top quality meals. The rest of the standard cost of an acceptable level of care would come from the taxpayer.

That more generous scheme quickly got scrapped. Or to be more accurate it was announced that its implementation would be postponed for a couple of years. Curiously a date which falls after the expected timing of the next General Election. Effectively the government took a harder look at the cost of financing the scheme and then decided to kick the problem down the road. They left relatives to carry on picking up the bill and the next government with the policy headache.

Much the same has happened with the problem of staff shortages and a lack of facilities. If you want to get rich quick then care is not the right profession for you. The country is totally dependent on an army of people who are prepared to work in challenging circumstances that require real knowledge and skill for very little money.

So £500m was boldly announced for a plan to transform the social care workforce. Then the money was quietly halved without a good explanation.

During Covid it became starkly evident quite how strongly we depended on the dedication of staff in care homes. They carried on working despite the risks to their own health and the harrowing experiences that many of them faced. The reward for the staff who helped to get our society through that challenge has been yet another real term pay cut and a daily struggle to plug the gaps left by colleagues who are no longer prepared to try and take the strain. Caring for others is often a really worthwhile and fulfilling experience. Being taken for a mug isn’t.

For all too many of those running care homes the temptation has been to sell their property and walk away from the struggle. It is getting harder and harder to find suppliers of good quality care and many of those who are still in business increasingly consist of large chains of suppliers owned by distant corporations.

It is hard to motivate staff to provide a caring service if they feel they are working for a hedge fund that is solely running a chain of ‘providers’ in order to make as much profit as they can.

What we really need is a well funded care service that is free at the point of use like the NHS. What we are getting is managed decline and huge pressure on those who need help and those who provide it.

Andy Brown is the North Yorkshire Councillor for Aire Valley.