While the Government focuses on the countdown to Brexit, we’re counting up the days since the social care Green Paper was first announced. We now have sight of The NHS Long Term Plan, but a vital piece of the puzzle is still missing, says Ray Mitchell, Head of Influencing, Independent Age.

Thousands of patients face spending the festive season in hospital due to a lack of outpatient treatment or social care being on offer for them, according to new analysis.

In response to today’s reports that the social care Green Paper may have been ‘ditched’ to free resources for no-deal Brexit planning

People with dementia occupy at least a quarter of hospital beds and are the biggest users of adult social care services, says Alzheimer's Society.

With social care accounting for nearly 40% of council budgets, vital services are depending on us and the government getting a long-term funding solution right, says Local Government Association chair Lord Porter

Extra national insurance and savings plans for social care would redress the balance of our current system, says Baroness Altmann

This green paper must work for younger people in need of care and support, says Baroness Campbell

Below is Independent Age's comment on the NHS Digital Adult Social Care Activity and Finance Report.

As Chancellor prepares to deliver Autumn Budget, research reveals public unaware of dementia costs and leading charity demands urgent social care investment, says Alzheimer's Society.

Labour MPs are preparing to launch a double bid to change the restrictive abortion laws in Northern Ireland this week in a move set to pile pressure on Theresa May.

Hft, a national charity that supports adults with learning disabilities, has submitted evidence to the House of Lords Economic Affairs Committee inquiry into the funding of adult social care. In its submission, the charity warned that financial pressures in the learning disability sector are often overlooked in a conversation dominated by elderly care.

There is huge potential for GPs to become champions of advance care planning and help make that happen – they just need the right support, says Compassion in Dying.

Independent Age have issued a response to the Matt Hancock announcement of £240million funding for social care to address delayed discharges from hospital.

The Health Secretary will today pledge to inject an extra £240m into the social care system in a bid to avoid a winter crisis in the NHS.

Jeremy Corbyn MP has used his Labour Party Conference speech to pledge an expansion of free childcare and to improve the pay and skill levels of childcare staff. Please find below a response from Save the Children. 

Plans for the future of social care need to be ready as soon as possible, writes Barbara Keeley

Alzheimer's Society has responded to Matt Hancock MP, Secretary of State for Health and Social Care.

Independent Age has released the below statement following the story today that ‘the strain on millions of unpaid carers is harming their health, jeopardising the care of loved ones they care for, and putting the adult social care system at an increased risk of collapse, council and care leaders are warning.'

Hft, a national charity that supports adults with learning disabilities, has submitted evidence to the UN Special Rapporteur on Extreme Poverty and Human Rights warning that cuts to local authority budgets in England are having a negative impact on social care providers, and the support they are providing to vulnerable adults.

We need a system that is equitable and universal access based on need, not on where you live and how much money you have, says Independent Age.

Independent Age is urging the government to introduce a social care contribution aligned to a commitment to provide free personal care, in order to help improve social care for older people, now and in the future. 

Research from Independent Age, the older people’s charity, examines various funding options for social care.

The number of adults aged 85 years and older needing round-the-clock care will almost double to 446,000 in England over the next 20 years, according to a study published in The Lancet Public Health.

England’s system of adult social care funding has left the country lagging behind the rest of the developed world, a major charity has warned.