Our old folk do better than most

OLD people needing care to stay in their own homes face a postcode lottery — but Oldham residents have thousands more spent on them than many others.

Last year, Oldham council spent £19.1 million on domiciliary care — an average of £6,604 per person.

But the figures, uncovered by the Lib- Dems show a huge discrepancy on cost per person depending on where you live.

Residents in Coventry needing the home help will have £9,862 on average spent on them, whereas Cornwall’s elderly get by on only £1,396.

Oldham’s spend per person puts them as the seventh highest council across the country.

Domiciliary Care can help people with personal care and can include day care, equipment and adaptations, meals and other non-residential services.

Lib-Dems health spokesman Norman Lamb said: “These figures point to gross variations in the quality and availability of care for elderly people across the country

“This Government has presided over a collapse in elderly services. Ministers have responded to warnings of a looming crisis with criminal underfunding.

“The Liberal Democrats recognise the need for extra funding for care. That’s why we’ve proposed an extra £2bn to guarantee all older people a personal care payment, based on need not ability to pay.”

A Department of Health spokesman said: “Local councils are responsible for providing social care services to their populations.

“The cost of providing services — and therefore the amount spent — can vary between councils for a number of reasons.

“For example, there may be different needs in different areas, or means testing may lead to service users with greater means contributing more to the cost of their care.”