Government consultation on the future of care needs in England

The UK government is consulting on the future of the care and support needs in England.

Statistics show that, with an ageing population, in 20 years' time a quarter of the entire adult population will be over 65 and the number of people over 85 will have doubled. The growth in the number of people with care and support needs will put tremendous pressure on services. There's also likely to be issues around the financial support that they receive through benefits and other funding streams.

The consultation, launched by the prime minister, asks the public for their views about care and support to create a new system that:

• promotes independence, choice and control for everyone who uses the care and support system,
• ensures everyone can receive the high quality care and support they need, and that government support should be targeted at those most in need, and
• is affordable for government, individuals and families in the long-term.

You can find out more, and find out how to have your say, through the Care Support Independence website.

To highlight the consultation, there was a story on BBC News at the weekend about a woman from Bradford, Julie Scott. Julie cares for her husband, Gordon, who has brain damage following a road accident. She also cares for her daughter Lois, who has epilepsy, quadriplegia and cerebral palsy, and who is partially-sighted.