This Fabian Society report reveals that spending on support for older people in England will need to rise by £35 billion to meet frail pensioners’ support and care needs by 2030. Annual increases of 7.5 per cent are required to meet this goal – far more than the extra promised by ministers for the NHS’s 70th birthday.
The research finds that £15 billion extra will be required by 2030 just to cope with the rising number of older people – even without improving the quality or quantity of services which are widely seen to be in crisis.
That translates into spending increases of 3.8 per cent each year and would leave the help on offer no better than it is today.
For the first time the figures look at all the forms of help older people with support and care needs receive from government not just services from local councils. The numbers reveal the true costs of supporting pensioners in England as the population grows older, including care homes, home care, disability benefits, supported housing, rehabilitation and home adaptations.
