Was the Government’s long-awaited plans for a much needed overhaul of social care worth the wait? In a word, no. Day in day out we support older and vulnerable people facing issues like care home fee rises, poor quality of care, the desire to stay in your own home, and lack of access to funding for support for conditions like dementia. In our professional view, when it comes to the deep-seated issues of social care, the new proposals may only make a difference for a limited number of people. That’s if they even get implemented. They simply bring more confusion to an already confused system and will unlikely save many individuals any money. It’s clear the safety net for individuals has some significant holes in it. None of us can rely on it and each of us should make both a health and a wealth plan. It’s time we stopped thinking of planning for the future as something we do in later life. The earlier each of us begins, the more options we allow ourselves when we eventually do need support.
SFE Board Director, Partner and Head of the Private Client department at Morrisons and a panel deputy for the Office of the Public Guardian and the Court of Protection.