The Association responds to the Autumn Budget 2024
The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves MP, has delivered her Autumn Budget Statement, setting out the UK government’s financial priorities for now and in the future.
Key announcements from the government include:
· £26 million provided to open new mental health crisis centres, reducing pressure on A&E services. A commitment to tackling the root causes of mental health problems and supporting people to remain in, return to or find work.
· Support for local authority services through a real terms increase in core local government spending power of around 3.2%, including at least £600 million of new grant funding for social care.
· £115 million in 2025-26 to deliver Connect to Work, a new supported employment programme matching people with disabilities or health conditions into vacancies and supporting them to succeed in their roles.
· Reforms to the health and disability benefits system early in 2025 to ensure the system supports people who can work to remain in or start work, in a way fair and sustainable way.
· A new housing package including £500 million in new funding for the Affordable Homes Programme, increasing it to £3.1 billion.
· The full new State Pension will rise from £221.20 to £230.25 a week, providing an additional £470 a year, while the full basic State Pension will increase from £169.50 to £176.45 per week.
· The weekly earnings limit for Carer’s Allowance will be increased to 16 hours at the National Living Wage, worth an additional £45 a week from April next year, making over 60,000 carers eligible for support.
· £233 million of additional spending in 2025-26 on homelessness, taking total spending to £1.0 billion in 2025-26.
We welcome the Government’s commitment to improve living standards through the affordable housing scheme, support for people experiencing homelessness, and benefit reforms – areas which act as key socio-economic determinants of poor mental health and illness.
Whilst we welcome the £26 million of funding for new mental health crisis centres, the role of prevention and the services that are being delivered by the VCSE sector are crucial in supporting people before they reach crisis point, and in turn, alleviating the pressures faced by the NHS. The VCSE mental health sector is a crucial partner to the NHS, supporting over 8 million people to live safe and well in their communities, and its invaluable role in the health and social care system needs to be recognised. We were disappointed with the lack of investment in the sector which is pivotal in improving access, experience, and outcomes for people with poor mental health and illness, especially marginalised communities, and addressing treatment gaps in the wider mental health system.
We were pleased to see an increase in National Living Wage rates and financial support for carers, as well as consideration of the detrimental impact the cost-of-living crisis has had on the nation – including on housing security. Thousands of carers who require financial support will also benefit from the renewal of the Household Support Fund. Though, we are concerned that we have yet to see details of the government’s plans for social care.
The increase of employer National Insurance contributions by 1.2% percentage points to 15% from April 2025 will see the operating costs of mental health service providers, including caring organisations, soar. This will leave many VCSE organisations, already faced with increased demand and the cost-of-living, to struggle.
We were also disappointed that there was no ring-fenced mental health budget with rates of poor mental health and illness increasing and no mention of financial support to relieve pressures on small charities, who make up around 80% of the voluntary sector in the United Kingdom.