Care to share

Three years ago, the Fabian Society set out what a National Care Service should look like in a research report, Support Guaranteed. A year later, in its manifesto, Labour drew on the ideas in Support Guaranteed and committed to a new service “delivering consistency of care across the country.”

Since the election, the social care situation has significantly improved. Yet there is still a long way to go to fulfil the manifesto promise. In this pamphlet, which features a foreword by the former secretary of state for health and social care, Wes Streeting MP, experts and policymakers identify the decisions the government will need to get right, spanning topics including funding, charging, the social care workforce, and many more. A number of contributors pick up on the theme of urgency: as Labour approaches the midpoint of its first term in office, it must ensure that social care is not sacrificed on the altar of an election campaign.