Everyone deserves high-quality social care if they need it. But social care services in this country are in crisis. 

Hundreds of thousands of people in England are waiting for care. Many are stranded in hospital beds due to the lack of capacity in care homes and amongst community carers. The Conservatives promised to “fix” the crisis in our social care system, so that no one would have to sell their home to pay for care and that they would not raise our taxes to do it. They have broken all these promises.

Liberal Democrats want everyone to be able to live in dignity and, where possible, independently, to support those who provide care to their loved ones, and to ensure that no one has to sell their home to pay for their personal care. 

Local Lib Dem parliamentary candidate, Chris Coghlan, said, “Everyone knows that the NHS is struggling to free up beds so that patients can be moved out of dangerously over-crowded Accident & Emergency departments or admitted for long-awaited surgery. That’s simply not possible when thousands of beds are occupied by patients whom doctors cannot discharge because the social care systems cannot cope.”

Chris is supporting Lib Dem plans to unlock these much-needed beds by:

> Introducing free personal care based on the model introduced by the Liberal Democrats in Scotland in 2002. 

> Hiring more social care staff, providing training and advancement, and paying them a decent wage by introducing a Carer’s Minimum Wage. 

> Increasing the Carer’s Allowance so unpaid carers get the support they desperately need. 

> A statutory guarantee of regular respite breaks for unpaid carers. 

Chris concluded, “Also, there is a strong economic incentive here. Better social care services will reduce waiting lists and speed up NHS treatments for many working-age people, allowing them to return to work sooner. We need joined-up thinking about social care from our government.”