BASW’s initial comment on the Summer Economic Statement

Chancellor Rishi Sunak was back in the Westminster Parliament today with another budget. With Covid-19 threatening the economy, his task was to stimulate the economy and slow job losses.

His announcement centred on the headline grabbing initiatives, including ‘Eat Out to Help Out’ a voucher worth up to £10 per head that can be used in restaurants and cafés for meals costing £20 or more.

In a similar vein, there is the potential to save up to £10,000 on Stamp Duty (the house price purchase tax) if you are spending up to £500,000 on buying your first house.

The statement does not appear to address key priority areas of concern that include the future sustainability of social care and public sector services, support for people on low incomes or those facing poverty, and concerns for the university sector.

BASW will continue to scrutinise the government announcements carefully to see how far they go in supporting these priorities.

Social workers are playing a key role in communities, providing support to individuals, children and families throughout Covid-19 and beyond.  This is a time to recognise their role, working alongside care colleagues and the health services, and to prioritise long term investment into building a thriving social care system for the future, invest in public sector services, invest in the future social work workforce and invest in vital support for people who use services.