Source · Select Committees · Health and Social Care Committee
Recommendation 7
7
Deferred
Require the Casey Commission to establish a workstream to reduce pressures on unpaid carers.
Recommendation
We recommend that the Casey Commission includes a specific workstream dedicated to reducing the pressures on carers, especially young carers. This workstream should consider how to support unpaid carers better, to ensure they get the respite they need and to look after their own health and wellbeing. It should also consider how businesses could be better incentivised to employ and support unpaid carers. (Recommendation, Paragraph 48) Costs to the care system
Government Response Summary
The government agrees with the recommendation but deflects by detailing £9 billion in Better Care Fund funding for 2025-2026, which focuses on prevention and community care, rather than committing to a specific Casey Commission workstream for carers.
Government Response
Deferred
HM Government
Deferred
We agree with this recommendation. We have committed around £9 billion of funding to the BCF for 2025 to 2026, including increasing the NHS minimum contribution to adult social care and the Disabled Facilities Grant. Through the BCF policy framework for 2025 to 2026, we have refocused the BCF to align with the health mission objectives of moving from a focus on sickness to a focus on prevention, and from hospital-based care to community-based care. The 2025 to 2026 framework sets the expectation that the NHS and local authorities work together to improve performance against metrics for: • emergency hospital admissions for people aged 65 and over • average lengths of discharge delay • long-term admissions to residential care homes and nursing homes for people aged 65 and over As set out in the 2025 to 2026 framework, the government is considering options for longer-term reform of the BCF. We will set out the approach to the BCF for 2026 and beyond in due course, taking account of the 10 Year Health Plan. Costs to the economy