Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what discussions he is having with the social care sector on (a) staffing levels, (b) funding and (c) impacts of covid-19 as part of a winter plan for social care.

The Adult Social Care: Winter Plan 2021 to 2022 will be published shortly and draws on the recommendations of the stakeholder-led review of last year’s Winter Plan. We hold weekly discussions with adult social care employers, representative organisations and local authorities about issues affecting the sector, including staffing levels, funding and wider impacts of COVID-19.

We are investing over £550 million until 31 March 2022 to support the implementation of measures to support the adult social care sector in the Winter Plan. This includes a £388.3 million extension to the Infection Control and Testing Fund and £162.5 million through the new Workforce Recruitment and Retention Fund. This brings specific funding for adult social care to more than £2.5 billion during the pandemic.