Page 24 - Unfair-To-Care-22-23-Flipbook

SECTION 5: THE IMPACT
SUPPORT WORKERS “AT
LEAST TWICE AS LIKELY TO
EXPERIENCE FOOD INSECURITY
AS HEALTH WORKERS.”
In November 2022, the Trussell Trust announced that use of food banks had almost doubled between 2014/15 and 2021/22, with the Trust supplying 2.1m food parcels during the past year27. As the cost-of-living crisis has really taken hold, the number of people being referred to the Trussell Trust’s food banks for the first time jumped by 40% to 145,000 in just a few months.
Among these is a growing number of social care Support Workers. A survey by the Health Foundation published in October 202228 found that residential care workers experienced much higher rates of financial hardship than most other sectors, and were at least
twice as likely to experience food insecurity as health workers. Their dependent children were nearly four times as likely to experience material deprivation.
Community Integrated Care has set up its own food parcel service and emergency financial assistance schemes in all of its regions – types of intervention which are becoming common across care providers.
THE REALITY OF LIFE ON A SUPPORT WORKER’S PAY MEANS THAT EVERY DAY IS A BUDGETING CHALLENGE. OFTEN, THE SMALL, UNEXPECTED EXPENSES
THAT MOST PEOPLE ARE ABLE TO MANAGE CAN PROVE DISASTROUS WHEN THERE IS NO FINANCIAL CUSHION. THE STRESS OF LIVING ON A FINANCIAL KNIFE EDGE WHILST PERFORMING A JOB THAT IS ESSENTIAL TO SOCIETY IS AN INJUSTICE THAT UNFAIR TO CARE IS WORKING TO REDRESS.
CAN SOCIAL CARE AFFORD TO LOSE ALMOST HALF ITS WORKFORCE?
Alternative Future Group (AFG) is one of the largest not-for-profit social care charities in the North West. It employs around 1600 frontline workers and supports approximately 1000 people who have a range of learning disabilities and mental health needs.
Like many other social care providers, it has become increasingly concerned by the growing pressures of low pay and soaring living costs on its colleagues. In response, it surveyed its workforce to understand the impact and risks of this crisis.
The results are alarming.
Of the 75% of AFG’s colleagues who responded to the survey, almost three quarters (72%) agreed or strongly agreed that they ran out of money before pay day and more than half (53%) resorted to using credit cards or borrowing money from lenders to cover basics such as food and
living costs. This meant that, unsurprisingly, 65% of the workforce were concerned about their financial situation.
27. Trussell Trust End-of-Year Stats Nov. 2022
28. The Cost of Caring: Poverty and Deprivation among residential care Workers in the UK
ALTERNATIVE
FUTURES GROUP
60% of the respondents also said they had to do regular overtime in order to top up their salary.
Worryingly, for both AFG and the wider adult social care sector, 47% of respondents stated they may be forced to leave their jobs in order to improve their salary.
And AFG is not unique. Across the entire social care sector, people are leaving jobs they love because of
this crisis. This has resulted in the accelerated growth of unfilled vacancies in the sector - from 112,000 in 2021 to 165,000 by October 2022. Without decisive government investment to enable care providers to offer fair pay, the social care vacancy rate may well be even higher in 2023.
Used with the kind permission of Alternative Futures Group
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