What is social care and who needs it in Swindon?

The cost of providing social care for adults and children across Swindon makes up around 80% of the council’s annual budget. But do you fully understand what is meant by social care and the circumstances in which residents need it? These pages aim to provide clarity.

Overview of social care

Many people may understandably give little or no thought to the care and support they might need until they - or someone they know - requires it. You may have heard in the media about the ‘rising costs of social care’ but not fully understood what lies behind the headlines:

• What is social care?
• Who provides it?
• What role do local authorities play?
• Why are the costs of social care rising?

Residents are often surprised to learn that the cost of providing social care for adults and children across Swindon accounts for around 80% of the council’s annual budget. Yet for the majority of residents who do not use these services, there may be little understanding of what social care looks like in practice or how it provides a lifeline to others in the community.

What exactly do we mean by social care?

Social care is at the heart of our community, providing support to those in need so that as many people as possible can live the life they want to lead. It matters to everyone, yet people’s experiences of social care - whether as recipients of formal care, their families, unpaid carers, or the social care workforce - can vary widely.

Social care is difficult to define because the term encompasses a wide range of activities, from child protection to end-of-life care.