The past two weeks have seen several significant announcements and interventions from senior government figures and other influential national voices that provide real grounds for optimism across the not-for-profit social care sector. For NCF members, and for the many partners and allies pressing for meaningful reform, there are encouraging signs of a growing commitment to strengthening social care, investing in and valuing the workforce, particularly those working for not-for-profit providers, and delivering the changes needed to improve outcomes and quality of life for people who rely on care and support.
On 9 September, Minister Alison McGovern brought together a group of senior adult social care leaders, including NCF Chief Executive Officer Vic Rayner, for a roundtable discussion on the future of the sector. The Minister later described the conversation as “uplifting and determined” and struck an optimistic note on the Fair Pay Agreement, commenting that “we are on our way, but there is a lot more to do”.
Just over a week later, the Minister took to the stage at (NCF member) the Alzheimer’s Society’s annual conference to reinforce her commitment to social care reform. Welcoming the fact that adult social care is “rising up the agenda” despite the many competing pressures facing government, she reflected on why the sector has been neglected for so long. She suggested that social care has too often been overlooked because of the historic undervaluing of women’s unpaid labour, as well as society’s reluctance to engage with the realities of ageing, disability and care needs. In contrast, she made a compelling case for social care as a vital economic and social asset, describing it as a “crucial and foundational role in the wider economy” and arguing that investment is “not just a matter of fairness … but a matter of recognising the work done by 50% of the population”.
The Minister concluded by highlighting the central role that a Fair Pay Agreement could play in laying the foundations for a future National Care Service. She also emphasised the close relationship between social care reform and broader economic priorities, arguing that the sector has the potential both to address workforce
shortages and to provide opportunities for more people, particularly young people, to enter employment. In her view, helping young people to “get a job and give them hope for the future” sits alongside providing “a clear direction for the health and social care sector to take over the next 10 years”.
A third significant intervention this fortnight came when Baroness Casey visited NCF member Mencap to meet people with a learning disability and their family members, hearing first-hand about their experiences of adult social care and the NHS. Filmed by ITV News, the visit highlighted concerns about people remaining in mental health hospitals for years, poor healthcare experiences, and the stark health inequalities faced by people with a learning disability, including significantly lower life expectancy and preventable deaths.
In her ITV News interview, Baroness Casey was particularly critical of the scale of privatisation within social care, condemning what she described as “profiteering” by companies making substantial profits “off the back of disabled people” and taxpayers. Reflecting on the evolution of the sector, she argued that the large-scale outsourcing of care to private providers from the 1980s onwards, without sufficient organisation and oversight, was “probably a mistake”.
It is encouraging to see both the Government’s continued commitment to meaningful social care reform and a growing willingness among senior national figures to challenge the impact of “extractive profit” and “profiteering” in the sector. This aligns closely with the advocacy of NCF and its members and strengthens the
case for greater recognition of the unique contribution made by not-for-profit providers. Grounded in local communities, focused on prevention and early intervention, and guided by a deep understanding of the people they support, not-for-profit organisations create value that benefits individuals, communities and the wider health and care system.
