Chronic underfunding has let down the vulnerable

Published: August 11, 2011

ANY of us at any time in our lives might need social care, and the recent report of the Commission on Funding of Care and Support brought home an uncomfortable truth.

Chronic underfunding has left us with a system too broken to support people properly. The commission chairman Andrew Dilnot is right to say that additional public funding for adult social care is urgently required.

I am concerned the media focus is only on older people as this obscures some critical aspects. I believe the report clearly shows that not only can the government afford to support disabled people of all ages, but crucially as a society we can’t afford not to.

It is now up to the government to fund adult social care so that it gives quality of life to disabled people of all ages.

For blind people, good social care means having the communication and mobility support they need to do things like getting to the bank, doctor’s or shops; reading post; travelling to work, volunteering or school; visiting family or friends or getting out for a walk, not just support with personal care (things like eating, washing and dressing).
Andrew Kaye
Maitland Park Villas, NW3