Oral Answers to Questions Debate
Full Debate: Read Full DebateLord Grayling
Main Page: Lord Grayling (Conservative - Life peer)Department Debates - View all Lord Grayling's debates with the Department of Health and Social Care
(2 years, 9 months ago)
Commons ChamberWe recognise the considerable challenges the adult social care sector faces in recruiting and retaining staff. We have put in place a range of measures to support local authorities and care providers to address workforce capacity pressures. These include a new £162.5 million workforce recruitment and retention fund, and the latest phase of our national recruitment campaign, launched on 3 November, which highlights adult social care as a rewarding and stimulating place to work.
We have committed to bring forth new measures in the White Paper, and to spend at least £500 million on recruiting that workforce. To address the emergency now, as I mentioned, there is £162 million. In addition, we have put around £500 million particularly to address discharge processes, and to ensure a discharge to assess process, which means it can be much quicker. We must ensure that those teams work together to shorten the discharge process. There is no doubt that our NHS and our whole system is under extreme pressure this winter, and we thank it for all the work it is doing.
There is a particular challenge in a county such as Surrey that has a rapidly ageing demographic, high housing costs, and where the cost of living is high generally. Could I urge the Minister and the Secretary of State to ensure that they consider all possible avenues to assist with what is becoming an acute shortage of key staff? We cannot end up in a position where the elderly do not receive the care they need, and we need maximum flexibility to ensure they get that care.
There is no doubt that the sector is facing extreme pressure. It always faces pressure as the demographic need grows by 1% to 2% every year, but we have set out money to help with the short-term impact of that. Surrey will receive £2,704,702, so just over £2.7 million. We recently started the biggest national recruitment campaign we have ever done, Made with Care, to thank our care workers and to show what a fantastic and rewarding career it would be. We will continue to work with local authorities to help as much as we can.