Adult Social Care: Long-term Workforce Plan

Baroness Pitkeathley Excerpts

Monday 13th January 2025 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Baroness Pitkeathley]

To ask His Majesty’s Government what steps they are taking to develop a long-term workforce plan for adult social care, similar to the NHS workforce plan.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health and Social Care (Baroness Merron) (Lab)]

My Lords, as the social care system in this country is failing, we are therefore launching an independent commission into social care to gain cross-party consensus and lay the foundations for a national care service. The commission will look at how we recruit, retain and recognise the workforce, building on work that is already under way to provide a career structure, to give care professionals greater skills and to legislate for the first ever fair pay agreements.

[Baroness Pitkeathley (Lab)]

I thank my noble friend the Minister for that response and remind her that, when it comes to social care, time really is of the essence. Does she agree that one of the real problems we face is the great difference in status between those who are employed in the NHS and those who are employed in social care? Could next steps, therefore, including the work of the commission, include looking towards developing a workforce that is much more flexible, so that it can actually work across both disciplines—for example, working with a patient in hospital and following them when they are discharged into social care—for the benefit of patients, users and their families?

[Baroness Merron (Lab)]

My noble friend is right that it is important that we have a workforce built around the needs of patients, rather than patients having to be worked around the needs of the workforce. I certainly hope and intend that, as we go forward, we will see much more of this flexibility. I share her view that time is of the essence and I also know that my noble friend and your Lordships’ House also understand that it is very important that we get this right.