COLUMN; Biggest spend in adult care and community wellbeing

Lincolnshire County Council recently set its budget for 2024/25, with a focus on protecting frontline services, working proactively with partners to provide good services and with bold ambitions for the future.
Coun Wendy Bowkett,  Executive councillor for Adult Care and Public Health  Lincolnshire County CouncilCoun Wendy Bowkett,  Executive councillor for Adult Care and Public Health  Lincolnshire County Council
Coun Wendy Bowkett, Executive councillor for Adult Care and Public Health Lincolnshire County Council

Through sound financial management through some turbulent times in recent years, it’s clear we are in a much better position financially than the dire situation some other councils find themselves in.

In my portfolio area of adult care and community wellbeing, the council aims to ensure people in Lincolnshire stay as healthy, safe and independent as possible during all stages of their life.

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This is by some distance the largest area of council spending, with £305m allocated from a total council budget of almost £650m. What does this mean in terms of spending in this area over the next 12 months?

We pay for almost 7,000 beds in long-term and short-term care settings and over four million hours of commissioned community-based support. This is as well as other preventative and specialised services.

We’ll be spending more in every area of the service over the next year. A major contributor to cost pressures is the 9.8% increase in the national living wage, the core component of the rate the council pays for commissioned care.

There is no doubt that both the covid recovery and cost of living challenges has meant we are seeing an increase in demand for residential care, with over 20% of people who had previously self-funded their care costs, now unable to do so. We’re also seeing an increased cost for mental health services with an increase in the demand and complexity of services that are needed.

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In terms of public health funding, 70% is spent on preventative health services for adults. The Lincolnshire Health and Wellbeing Board have agreed council funding of £359m from the county’s Better Care Fund for the next year.

This money pays for important services that help residents stay safe and well. Spend in areas such as the community equipment service, reablement services and mental health provision, helps prevent more acute and costly health and care interventions, such as hospital stays and emergency incidents.

We’ll be ensuring these services are firmly centred on our residents and their needs, to enable them to enjoy the maximum possible independence, choice and control over their own lives.