How will councils meet the ever increasing demand for our services? The recent Caring for Future consultation has put this question into focus, particularly the demand-led pressures driven by a rapidly aging population.

Since 2001 the percentage of those aged 60 and above in counties has increased 3.1% to 25.6%, higher than all other parts of England and Wales. Over the past decade demographic shifts and welcomed increases in life expectancy, particularly in county areas, has led to a substantial increase in service demand and incidences of dementia, placing unprecedented demands on county adult social care departments.

The introduction of a £72,000 cap on care costs and new duties under the Care & Support Bill are set to intensify this trend.

The County Councils Network (CCN) recently surveyed our members on the implications of the reforms ahead of our submission to the Caring for Our Future consultation.

The results showed overwhelming support for the Government's reforms, with over 70% strongly or very strongly supporting the principles behind their introduction. This support shows recognition amongst the sector that whilst consecutive Governments have accepted there is a need to reform the way we fund care and support, previous administrations have shied away when faced with the complexities and costs of doing so.

But whilst the Coalition should take credit for tackling this policy dilemma, like those before them, they should be under no illusions of the challenges that lay ahead. Although there is clear appetite for reform amongst CCN members, our research showed that only 30% of respondents were confident or very confident they will succeed in delivering the reforms.

For counties, questions over funding shortfalls and workforce capacity to meet a significant increase in service demand, particularly amongst ‘self-funders', is stifling confidence.

From 2016 many of those that previously had little, if any, contact with their local authority when arranging and funding their own care will be bought into the system for the very first time.

Extending the duties of local authorities to provide information, support, and care accounts to self-funders is an important cornerstone of the reforms, enabling better care prevention, early intervention and financial planning.

However, with the level of self-funders much higher in counties - ranging between 40-80% in CCN member authorities - the implementation challenges are immense.

For instance, with 80% self-funders in my own county, we have initially estimated the cost at an additional £50m per annum, while Leicestershire CC has estimated the cost at £30m, including £3m per year on 7-8,000 additional assessments. With these estimates modelled on existing eligibility and assessment criteria, the final costs could to be higher once the full details of government regulations are revealed.

It is no secret that even before these reforms are implemented, the adult social care system is under severe strain due to funding reductions and demand-led pressures. Counties have needed to be innovative to maintain existing service standards.  For instance, Cheshire West and Chester Council ‘Shaping the Future Together' programme achieved a saving of £3.74m worth of efficiencies during 2012/13, whilst Kent CC are set to achieve a 5% shift in activity from the acute care sector towards community services saving approximately £59m per year across local health partners.

The Government has rightly recognised that this type of innovation and integration activity is essential to easing current pressures within the system with the creation of the £3.8bn Integration transformation Fund (ITF) for 2015/16 and selection of ‘integration pioneers'.

But faced with a rapid extension in duties to self-funders, counties now need the Government to listen to sector concerns over the short, medium and long-term funding and resource implications of their reforms. Innovation combined with health and social care integration alone will not achieve the Coalition's long-term vision for care and support if the reforms are under-resourced.

Firstly, the Government must clarify how it intends to fund the reforms out of new, not existing, resources. Not only is the £335m set aside by the Chancellor for the implementation of Dilnot top-sliced from the local government settlement, sector estimates suggest this will not cover the extensive costs associated with recruitment, assessments and new I.T systems.

Secondly, funding formulas, including the distribution of the ITF, must reflect the reality that counties will be most impacted by the reforms because of continuing demographic shifts and increases in life expectancy. Government should break with traditional distribution formulae which fail to take into consideration the specific demand-led pressures facing counties.

Thirdly, the Government must ensure that forthcoming regulations introduce greater portability of care and financial assessments but crucially maintain local flexibility for counties to prioritise frontline resources, encourage self-assessment and manage increased service demand.

And lastly, the Department of Health must heed the calls of the CCN, LGA and ADASS on the potential financial risks and costs of universal deferred payments. The extension of deferred payments is an important method of ensuring no-one has to sell their home in their life-time to pay for care. But the Government must underwrite the financial risks local authorities will be exposed to and explore additional options, such as a national care loans scheme.

Without this package of measures to ensure the reforms are realistically funded, we face a pressing challenge becoming a critical failing.

Cllr David Hodge is chairman of the County Councils Network