The Government is using the ageing population to call for more housing, but failing to fund the increased demand for social care. The NHS funding crisis is placing a huge burden on council social care budgets, and a new LGA survey also paints a grim picture for the next financial year. A total of 40% of respondents from social services departments said the financial situation was worse than last year, and 51% believe the situation will stay the same next year or get worse. This comes as the Department for Communities and Local Government released statistics highlighting projected record highs in increased life expectancy in a bid to push through more new housing. An LGA spokesman said: ‘Now that ministers have accepted the fact that there will be more older people in coming years, we can only hope they will also recognise an increase in resources to cover the care these people want and deserve in later life.' And chairman, Lord Bruce-Lockhart, added: ‘Without additional funding for this new demand, local government may potentially face a situation, by as early as 2009, where it cannot afford to provide support to the 370,000 elderly people with lower levels of need.' Responding to the LGA survey, the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services stated this was not a crisis waiting to happen, it was ‘a crisis already here'. A Department of Health spokesman said it had urged the NHS to take full account of the impact of its decisions on social care and community-based services. ‘We have made it clear that the NHS must work with local government to ensure the most efficient use of all available resources in every community,' he said.
