Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, with reference to Spring Budget 2017, how much of the additional funding for social care (a) was spent in 2017-18 and (b) is forecast to be spent in (i) 2018-19 and (ii) 2019-20 to fund social care providers paying the National Living Wage, broken down by NUTS 1 region and local authority.

The improved Better Care Fund is given to local authorities via a section 31 grant for the following purposes:

• meeting adult social care needs;
• reducing pressures on the NHS, including supporting more people to be discharged from hospital when they are ready; and
• ensuring that the local social care provider market is supported.

We do not collect specific data on how much local authorities have spent, or forecast to spend, on funding social care providers.