Mencap responds to new ADASS figures

New figures released from The Association of Directors of Adult Social Services (ADASS) estimates more than 500,000 adults are waiting for social care in England, a major increase on last year’s estimate of 294,000. Mencap has issued the following comment:

Jackie O’Sullivan, Executive Director of Communications, Advocacy and Activism at the learning disability charity Mencap, said: “Social care is not fixed as the Prime Minister once promised, and that is painfully obvious in the new figures from the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services (ADASS). We know many people with a learning disability, their families and those working in social care are paying the price of a system ravaged by the pandemic – services are still closed, staff are spread too thin, and ultimately people’s lifelines to the outside world are being cut off.

“New research by Mencap has also revealed widespread loneliness amongst people with a learning disability and almost a third (32%) are struggling with their mental health, with many people still stuck at home in the aftermath of the pandemic because of reduced social care support. Mencap is urging decision-makers to act now to provide community support to prevent further isolation and irreparable damage to the mental health and wellbeing of people with a learning disability. We also need to see longer-term funding ​targeted at ​ supporting decent pay rises for social care workers, many of whom are paid far too little and will be hit hardest by the ever-increasing cost of living.”