A future for social care that people can believe in – or another missed opportunity?

By Steve Veevers, Chief Executive of Hft

Last night’s announcement of the Terms of Reference for the Independent Commission into Adult Social Care, chaired by Baroness Louise Casey, should have been a moment of hope for a sector long promised reform. Instead, I’m left wondering whether this government – one that claims to be rooted in civil society – truly understands or values the care and support system that hundreds of thousands of people rely on to live their lives with dignity, purpose and connection.

Let’s be clear: local government is on its knees. Councils up and down the country are under extraordinary pressure. Many of them are staring into the financial abyss, while trying to hold together the fabric of the social care safety net. In the midst of this, charitable providers like Hft – rooted in communities, not driven by profit – are trying to keep delivering care with compassion, even as our own foundations begin to shake.

That’s why I welcomed the announcement of this Commission. There’s never been a more urgent time to face the reality of our broken care system. But urgency is not the same as action, and the long-range ambitions of the Commission risk missing the people and providers being squeezed out of the system today.

It’s right that the Commission recognises the distinct needs of different groups, including learning disabled adults. This matters. Our support is not interchangeable with the care typically associated with older age. The daily lives of the people we support are shaped by a different set of ambitions, barriers and expectations. It’s also right that the Terms of Reference acknowledge the role of different types of providers. But let’s not tiptoe around the truth: this is a sector in crisis, and time is not on our side.

The Health Foundation has estimated a funding gap of up to £18 billion by 2033. And yet the Commission is being asked, first and foremost, to consider whether existing funding is being ‘best used’. After over a decade of efficiency drives, service reductions, and fire-fighting by providers and commissioners alike, this framing feels out of touch – even insulting. The question isn’t whether local authorities are spending money wisely, it’s why they’re being asked to deliver care with a fraction of the resource they actually need.

Since this government took office, we’ve seen rising costs for providers, new tax burdens like increased Employer National Insurance contributions, and deep uncertainty for people who depend on benefits to live independently. All of this, justified in the name of fiscal discipline. But what about moral discipline – the responsibility to protect the most vulnerable and ensure a decent, dignified standard of support?

The truth is that unless something changes – and changes soon – the sector won’t be standing in a decade’s time. One in three providers told us in this year’s Sector Pulse Check report that they’ve considered exiting the market. These aren’t abstract statistics – they represent the very real risk of collapse in the availability of care. And with it, the risk of collapse in the NHS, in local government, and most importantly, in the lives of the people who count on us to be there.

Baroness Casey has a tough job ahead. She is a formidable public servant and I don’t doubt her commitment. But we need more than a national conversation – we need a national reckoning. For too long, adult social care has been an afterthought. If this Commission becomes another vehicle for delay, distraction or devolution of blame, then we will look back on this as a missed opportunity that we simply could not afford.

Hft – and the wider charitable sector – will engage with the Commission constructively. But we will also speak truth to power. We cannot support people to live full, ambitious, connected lives without a system that is funded fairly, staffed properly and valued politically.

The question now is whether this government has the courage to deliver that – or whether it will let social care drift further toward the edge.