“We are pleased the Government has accepted the calls from councils and care providers for this funding to be extended, as we head into the winter period and face the possibility of a potential second wave of infections."
Responding to the announcement of the Infection Control Fund being extended to March 2021 and an extra £546 million to be made available to care providers, Cllr Ian Hudspeth, Chairman of the Local Government Association’s Community Wellbeing Board, said:
“Social care has been on the frontline throughout this pandemic and we need to continue doing all we can to shield and protect older and disabled people living in care homes and those receiving care in their own homes.
“We are pleased the Government has accepted the calls from councils and care providers for this funding to be extended, as we head into the winter period and face the possibility of a potential second wave of infections.
“This extra funding and regular testing of those who use and work in social care needs to be supported by addressing other important issues, such as ensuring everyone in the community who needs a test can receive one, together with a consistent, reliable supply of PPE for frontline staff.
“Taken together, this will help councils’ public health teams to reduce and prevent coronavirus outbreaks in their areas. Cross-party talks on finding a long-term, sustainable funding settlement for social care also need to start urgently.”
Notes
The LGA represents more than 330 councils of all types across England. We work on behalf of our members to support, promote and improve local government.
It is councils who had led communities through the COVID-19 crisis. Our recent polling shows that 71 per cent of residents trust their council and two thirds are satisfied with the way their local council runs things in their area. Our new discussion paper - Re-thinking Local - sets out how councils must now be empowered to locally-lead the COVID-19 recovery and tackle the economic, environmental and community challenges that we will face as a result of the pandemic.