Report

Beyond caring: a new funding model for later-life social care

This report from UK think tank Re-State calls for a new Later Life Care Fund to replace England’s failing model for funding for older people’s social care.

New research from Re:State sets out the case for a fundamental overhaul of how later-life social care is funded in England, arguing that the current model is unfair, unsustainable, and no longer fit for purpose. In its new report, Beyond caring, the think tank calls for the creation of a dedicated Later Life Care Fund to replace the existing system, which it says has been shaped by short-term fixes rather than long-term solutions.

The report argues that working-age and later-life social care should no longer be treated as a single funding problem. Instead, it proposes a prefunded social insurance model for later-life care, under which individuals would make mandatory contributions equivalent to 1.8% of income tax from age 34. These contributions would be invested over time, enabling the system to keep pace with rising demand and costs.

Central to the proposal is a ‘triple guarantee’ of protections: an annual personal care allowance to cover lower levels of need, a system of progressive co-payments based on means for more intensive care, and a protected asset floor of £75,000. The new model would also abolish the Adult Social Care precept on council tax.

Alongside this, the report outlines transition arrangements, including additional contributions from current and near-retirement cohorts and presents proof-of-concept modelling to demonstrate how the approach could deliver a financially sustainable system over the long term.