Value Social Care

PRESS RELEASE Embargoed till 00.01 25th February 2025

Value Social Care: Why Tuesday 25th February 2025 Matters for Millions?

A Pivotal Moment for Social Care: Today, on the 25th of February 2025, we stand at a critical crossroads for social care within our communities.

Thousands of care and support providers, some accompanied by recipients of care, are joining us in a coordinated Day of Action centred in Westminster and simultaneously from multiple locations around the country.

The Providers Unite Picnic is more than just a date on the calendar; it is a call to action, a moment to recognise, affirm and value the essential role of social care in our society.

Millions of individuals, carers, service users, families, and communities depend on a system that has long been undervalued and underfunded. This must change to ensure that we have a system that is fit for the future.

We are an integral part of the care and health offer alongside the NHS and Local Government partners. However, since the late 1980s, successive governments have ignored social care and provided inadequate investment to meet the demand for safe and happy lives of millions. It’s time for real change. 💚

As part of our #ValueSocialCare campaign, we are calling on the government to engage in a meaningful dialogue with us about the impact of the October 2024 measures, alonside urgent urgent reforms to ensure fair pay, better working conditions, and sustainable investment in care services.

1.6 million social care and support workers provide essential support to some of the most vulnerable people in our communities, yet their contributions often go unnoticed and unrewarded.

Why ProvidersUnite has created the 25th Feb Day of Action:

1. To explain to central government that Social Care deserves Recognition & Respect. Social care is an essential support to our society, ensuring dignity and independence for those in need. It is time for policymakers to acknowledge its true value.
2. To call for Fair Pay for Social Care Workers Now! Our incredible social care workforce deserves the fair pay and recognition they have long been
3. 5.8% of the working population dedicated to social care – more than in the NHS, it’s time their wages reflect their skill, dedication, and the essential nature of their work. These professionals are the backbone of our communities, yet they are still treated as second-class workers.
4. To highlight the need for Sustainable Funding for Community Care and Support Services. Millions rely on community care and support services every day, but without proper investment, these essential services are at risk. Rising costs and changes to Employers’ National Insurance contributions threaten access to quality care for countless individuals. We cannot let vulnerable people be left without support.

It’s time for real commitment to Value Social Care.

Invest in community care now to protect lives and futures. We urge the public to stand with us and demand meaningful change. The future of our care system and the well-being of millions depends on it.

END

Notes to the editor

A Sector at Breaking Point

National Minimum Wage has increased by 37.04% between April 2021 (£8.91) and April 2025 (£12.21), yet funding has not kept pace, placing care and support providers on an unstable footing and pushing many towards the brink of bankruptcy.

Currently there is sectorwide funding gap of £8.4bn. meaning providers are already struggling to sustain essential services. Research by the independent think tank the Nuffield Trust, published in November 2024, calculated the overall financial impact of the additional costs of the 25/25 Budget on independent care and support providers as £2.8 billion.

Cumulatively this cost of investment from April 2025 is more than £10bn.

Why over 20,000 Community Care and Support Services are uniquely Vulnerable:

• 70% to more than 80% of our costs go towards employing people, meaning wage increases have a disproportionate financial impact.
• Our workforce is largely part-time and low-paid, leading to higher National Insurance costs with sudden wage increases.

ProvidersUnite is a grassroots coalition uniting community care and support providers across the UK to advocate for our sector survival. Orginated by Nadra Ahmed CBE and the Board of the National Care

Association connecting with 150 other providers to sign a joint letter to the Chancellor Rachel Reeves on the 12th Nov 2024.To date more than 3800 providers and concerned citizens have added their voice to this call for urgent funding support from April 2025 for all Care and Support Providers. Our strength lies in our shared commitment to safeguarding the future of adult care services and ensuring the voices of providers are heard at every level of government.

We bring together a diverse and vital network of care providers, collectively serving over 1.2 million individuals and employing a dedicated workforce of 1.59 million.

Together, we deliver essential community care and support services valued at £68.1 billion, highlighting the critical role we play in the well-being of our communities and the nation’s economy

Find out more

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