Over the last year, at one level, the government has shown it recognises the need for serious reform within the social care system, both through the phased £2bn increase and flexibility afforded for council tax increases for social care purposes; a move that benefits service users, local government and – given the knock-on effects – the NHS. However, while welcomed, the whole sector knows this is still not in itself a financial sustainable solution and it is not always sensitive to local needs eg the product of the social care precept does not neatly correlate with need in every local area.

There is simply not being enough money in the current system to reflect the reality of the costs of an aging population, and this remains the most fundamental point - the current rules are incoherent and inequitable and weigh against a particular class of care, namely residential social care, for two key reasons.