The Local Government Association (LGA) has hit back after a body representing independent care workers accused councils of being “skinflints”.
In a report, Care England said one in five councils have given no increase in the fees they pay for 2018/19, despite cost and wage bills rising by up to 5%.
Professor Martin Green, chief executive of the body, said: “These councils pay care homes just £350 a week for 24hr care, seven days a week.
“By failing to properly fund their care, they are abandoning old people.
“To give no real increase in fees when costs have risen by over four per cent is an insult.”
A press release released by the body said that “skinflint” councils were “abandoning old people” by failing to properly fund care home places.
In response, Ian Hudspeth, chairman of the LGA’s Community Wellbeing Board, said: “Over recent years, councils have protected adult social care relative to other services.
“But the scale of the overall funding picture for local government as a whole means adult social care services still face a £3.6bn funding gap by 2025, just to maintain existing standards of care.”
“The sad reality is that the underfunding of the sector is threatening the quality of care on offer for older and disabled people and its availability.”
