Dr Annie Williamson, Associate Researcher, IPPR Commission on Health and Prosperity
Economic and societal benefits of social care in current economic and political market
The UK economy is stuck. Despite countless pledges and plans, we face stagnant growth alongside high inequality (Resolution Foundation 2022). Meanwhile, more and more people are not getting the social care they need, due to sclerotic funding and an undervalued workforce. Reforms have been shelved to achieve short-sighted cost savings (Bottery 2023). Yet as a health economist and NHS doctor, I see daily how social care offers a foundation for untapped prosperity. Viewed as an investment, not a cost, social care can unlock prevention, autonomy, and high-quality careers across the country.
Adult social care is at the heart of preventing sickness and deterioration. Over the eight years to 2018, per-person social care spending for over 65s fell by a third – whilst average A&E visits increased by a third, likely because people turn to A&E when community support options are unavailable (IFS 2020). And preventable ill health costs us all: IPPR’s Commission on Health and Prosperity found long-term illness of a household member leads to £1,224 in lost annual income, and sickness-related lost earnings cost the UK £43 billion in 2021 (Thomas et al 2023).
We know care services help, from physio-led balance programmes and supportive home carers to prevent falls, to community lunches and retirement communities that counter loneliness. Service users and their families shouldn’t have to fight for services that improve their lives and our economy. We ought to universalise access to the most proactive social care, so every adult is supported to stay as well and independent as possible.
Second, social care can support greater autonomy, which brings wider economic benefits. Funding adequate social care officers to design individualised care packages can save money in the long run, such as supporting adults with disabilities to volunteer in a charity shop or work in jobs they love (Naylor & Wellings 2019). Well-designed services for older adults also enable independent, active lives to spend with loved ones, care for grandchildren, or work in a mentoring role. Retirement villages are one positive model of a ‘place to live’ with facilities and support, yet provision falls short of demand (Housing LIN 2017). Economically, if one couple for every 50 older homeowners moved into specialist retirement housing, this could save £14.5 billion across the country, and reduce thee length of unplanned hospital admissions from eight to 14 days to between one and two days (ibid). Community-building benefits can also be remarkable, as in the intergenerational Nightingale House, which runs an on-site nursery for children aged two to five years.
But perhaps the biggest untapped opportunity lies in transforming the care workforce. Care work is currently one of the worst sectors in the country for pay, conditions, and progression. Huge vacancies are unsurprising, when care managers comment ‘I dread hearing Aldi opening up nearby… I know I will lose staff’ (House of Commons 2022). Furthermore, care overwhelmingly relies on women and minority ethnic people, including a huge amount of unpaid labour. This is a broken labour market, failing to meet care needs and failing the 1.8 million-strong workforce.
When things are this bad, however, improvement offers low hanging fruit for economic growth. Good jobs – those that provide skilled training, future security, and at least a living wage – are core to renewal, yet are lacking in many regions across the country (Jung & Collings 2021). IPPR has called for a Better Care Charter requiring all state-funded providers to pay living wages and engage in sectoral bargaining, of the kind that has transformed social care in New Zealand (Patel et al 2023). Social care reaches every corner of the UK, and as a service-focused industry, offers greater security than sectors under threat of automation. If adult social care ensured good jobs and fairer pay, this could drive more equitable, future-proof employment and economic growth.
In sum, the care sector is arguably the area of greatest untapped potential for economic growth in this country. We can’t afford not to care.
