This page provides an overview of social care in Southend-on-Sea, along with key metrics that could affect social care. Understanding these metrics is important because they help contextualise the challenges with social care provision in each local authority. These statistics are important to keep in mind when reviewing the other pages.
Why are these metrics important? Population size and density can affect the demand for social care services. For example, if a local authority has a high population (relative to other areas), it may need to allocate more resources to meet care needs. Similarly, areas with high population density may require more care services due to the increased number of people living in close proximity. Inversely, areas with a low population density may have fewer care needs, but residents may face challenges accessing services due to the distance between them. Lastly, people in rural areas might live further away from services, which can impact their ability to access care, or make it more expensive to provide.
Understanding these metrics can help local authorities plan and allocate resources effectively.
Deprivation decile is a measure of the level of deprivation in a local authority. It is calculated by ranking areas in England from 1 (most deprived) to 10 (least deprived) based on factors such as income, employment, education, and health. A higher decile indicates lower levels of deprivation, while a lower decile suggests higher levels of deprivation. Understanding deprivation levels can help local authorities identify areas that may require additional support and resources to address social care needs.
IMD 2019 for the Lower Tier Local Authorities: Southend-on-Sea
Deprivation rank is a measure of the relative deprivation of a local authority compared to other areas in England. It is calculated by ranking areas from 1 (most deprived) to 32,844 (least deprived) Lower Layer Super Output Areas (LSOA), which can be thought of as “small areas”. This rank is based on factors such as income, employment, education, and health. A lower rank indicates higher levels of deprivation, while a higher rank suggests lower levels of deprivation. Understanding deprivation ranks can help local authorities identify areas that may require additional support and resources to address social care needs.
IMD 2019 for the Lower Tier Local Authorities: Southend-on-Sea
Many people want care, some receive care, but a significant number go without. What types of care are being requested? What care is actually provided? This section explores the gap between need and provision, the types of care available, and how our own data contributes to the understanding of these challenges.
Access Social Care and other Helplines providers are working to bridge this gap by providing free legal support to people who are struggling to access social care services. This first chart illustrates the types of calls we are getting.
The rest of this page distingushes between the different types of care provided to Working Age People and Older People, as we are able to disaggregate at a greater level of granularity.
Note: these values are a work in progress… expect these numbers to go up
This plot shows a breakdown of the types of requests for assistance received by Access Social Care and other helplines. Understanding the themes of these calls can identify areas where additional support and resources may be needed. For example, a high number of calls related to housing may indicate a need for more affordable housing options, while a high number of calls related to social care assessments may suggest a need for improved access to care services. The request types are:
Assessments: An assessment is a meeting or form to find out what help someone needs with daily tasks.
Care Plan: A care plan is a written agreement that lists the support you’ll get and who to contact if things change.
Carers: Carers are people who help a disabled or ill person with daily tasks.
Charging: Charging refers to checking if you can afford to pay for some of your care based on your savings.
Information Seeking: Information seeking means getting advice about available care options.
Legal Issues and Complaints: Legal issues and complaints involve reporting problems with your care to the council or an ombudsman.
Safeguarding: Safeguarding is protecting people from abuse or neglect.
Of course, high numbers also mean that people know where to call, and this number can be impacted by advocacy efforts. As a counterpoint, areas with low numbers may indicate a lack of awareness of available services or a need for more outreach to connect people with support.
To protect privacy, our minimum bin size is 5, which means that if we field 1-5 queries on a topic, we display 5.
Are you a helpline and would like to combine data resources? Let us know!
Access Social Care casework, AccessAva data, and helpline partner submissions
Working Age People
Knowing how many people are requesting social care, how many people are recieving care and what percent of people are disabled helps understand need and social care provision at a top level. For example, a high number of people requesting care may indicate a need for additional resources or services, while a low number of people receiving care may suggest a gap in service provision. Understanding these metrics can help identify areas where additional support may be needed.
MW was diagnosed with Functional Chronic Pain, she cannot walk without support, she holds on to her furniture to move around the house. She uses a wheelchair, especially when she goes out, with support from friends and family. She lives on second floor with 5 flights because of the way the building is designed and there is no lift. She never goes out because of the difficulties she experiences with the stairs. She needs help with cooking, cleaning, shopping and showering. She relies on friends and her mum who has knee replacement.
She was referred by the Social Prescriber who referred her onto also referred her to Croydon Adult Support, they told her they are short of staff to allocate her a social worker, so she was placed on a long waiting list. MW case still hadn’t progressed until the Social Prescriber, who had been recently trained on the Care Act, referred her to Access Social Care’s free legal Chatbot letter clinic.
The legal clinic volunteer completed a letter to Croydon Council with MW within a week which was sent to Adult Social Services. Access Social Care then called her after two weeks to complete a follow up survey. MW informed them that she had had an assessment and was waiting to hear back from Croydon following the panel meeting. Social Services has now done the assessment after which the panel offered MW 9 hours of social care support.
This case study is based on real data from Croydon. Have a story to tell? Let us know, and we might display it here!
This plot shows the types of care provided to working-age people in Southend-on-Sea. Understanding the types of care available can help local authorities identify areas where additional support and resources may be needed. For example, a high number of people receiving personal care may indicate a need for more support with daily living activities, while a high number of people receiving respite care may suggest a need for additional support for carers.
ASCFR and SALT Data Tables 2023-24 Sheet T34
About 18.4 % of residents report a disability after age-standardising. The England figure is 17.6 %. Southend-on-Sea therefore has a slightly larger share of disabled people. Its total population is only 182,000, but it is very dense (4,336 people per km²) and fully urban. Mixed levels of deprivation, with poor and better-off streets side by side, may add to health stresses and explain the higher disability rate.
In 2024, 1,905 working-age adults (18–64 years) asked the council for care or support. This is 1,045 per 100,000 residents, a little below the national rate of 1,143 per 100,000. A lower request rate, even with more disabled people, can point to strong family help, good universal services, or possible unmet need that has not yet reached the council’s door.
Southend-on-Sea supports 940 working-age adults, equal to 516 per 100,000 people. The England average is 533 per 100,000, so formal service use is again slightly lower.
Patterns inside the total give more insight. Only 5 people are in nursing homes and 95 in residential homes, both below national norms. In contrast, use of community care paid through direct payments is high (145 per 100,000 versus 122 nationally). Part direct payments are also above average. This suggests the council promotes personal budgets and that residents value control over their care. Fewer people rely on council-commissioned packages alone, so demand for block-contracted hours or bed places is modest.
Data for 2025 show low numbers asking for help with assessments, care plans, charging, or safeguarding. For example, only 1.1 people per 100,000 sought assessment advice against 1.7 nationally. Charging enquiries stand at 4.4 per 100,000, again below the England level of 5.7. This may mean that guidance on the council website and in local voluntary groups is clear, so fewer formal queries arise. It could also mean that some citizens are unaware of their rights, which would hide latent need.
The area’s compact urban form makes local services easy to reach, so direct payments can work well; people can find personal assistants or small agencies close by. Low use of nursing and residential care might follow from this same proximity, as help can be delivered at home at lower cost.
Deprivation is close to average but has a wide spread. Residents in the poorer wards could have higher disability, while those in better-off wards have resources to arrange their own care, keeping council demand down.
The council should keep investing in community support and direct payment advice, as these match local preference and geography. At the same time, it needs to test whether lower request rates hide unmet need, especially in the most deprived streets. Regular outreach and simple online tools can help residents understand when to seek help. Finally, because the share of disabled people is above average, planners must watch future demand closely; even a small rise in request rates could stretch resources in this compact, fully urban authority.
✨ ✅ ❌Older People
Just like with Working Age people, knowing how many older people are requesting social care, how many people are recieving care and what percent of the population is 65+ helps understand need and social care provision at a top level.
Jamaican female, blind and in her 40s. She was in an emergency Bed & Breakfast with her Niece, who acts as her unofficial carer, she is unable to work but would like to go to University. She is receiving PIP but not the Daily Living Allowance which she applied for in June 2021. She is vulnerable and has a history of self harm so was assigned a rehab Support Worker. Vanessa supported her using the Chatbot to chase up her PIP Daily Living allowance application, after waiting for several months and they received a reply within a week but was awarded the lower rate.
Another Chatbot letter was sent to request an urgent assessment due to her vulnerability and this was action quickly by the LA. Vanessa also supported her to use the chatbot and ask the Social worker to be moved to a place that supports her needs and rights. As she was having to use a shared bathroom, toilet and kitchen in a place with drug/alcohol abusers and being blind with no carer, this left her vulnerable. The Chatbot was used again to raise this issue and after a few weeks she was successfully moved to a private property in another area.
This case study is based on real data from Croydon. Have a story to tell? Let us know, and we might display it here!
As above, it is important to see what type of care older people are being provided because it can help explain where additional work is needed.
ASCFR and SALT Data Tables 2023-24 Sheet T34
Between 2019 and 2023 the share of residents aged 65 plus rose from 19.1 percent to 19.3 percent. The rise is small but steady and is slightly above the national range of 18.4–18.9 percent in the same years. Southend’s overall population stayed almost flat at about 181 000, so the growth reflects ageing rather than inward migration. The town is very urban (4 336 residents per km²) and displays mixed deprivation; some neighbourhoods are well-off while others sit among the most deprived nationally. These contrasts can create different patterns of demand inside a compact area, making service planning more complex than the headline figures suggest.
In 2024 there were 4 405 requests for social-care help from people aged 65 plus. Adjusted for population, this equals 2 417 requests per 100 000 residents, very close to the England average of 2 438. The near-average rate, combined with a larger-than-average older population, hints that the overall level of expressed need is slightly muted. Possible explanations include family support networks, voluntary groups, or barriers to access that keep some need hidden. Monitoring unmet need will be important as the cohort grows.
Southend supported 2 050 older residents with long-term services in 2024, or 1 125 per 100 000. This is around 12 percent higher than the England mean. In other words, once people enter the system they are more likely to stay in ongoing support than elsewhere. The pattern of placements offers further clues.
Residential placements are prominent: 313 per 100 000 residents versus a national 250. By contrast nursing home use is only 25 per 100 000 compared with 122 nationally. The imbalance may stem from supply. Southend has many small residential homes but fewer premises able to meet nursing standards. Another factor could be relatively good physical health among the local older population, delaying the onset of high clinical need. Should acuity levels rise, pressure on limited nursing capacity could grow quickly.
Community support built around personal budgets is a clear local strength. Direct-payment-only services (63 per 100 000) and part direct-payment packages (25 per 100 000) both sit just above national norms, while council-managed personal budgets reach 691 per 100 000, well ahead of the England figure of 508. The council therefore enables many residents to shape their own care, which aligns with policy on choice and control. Traditional council-commissioned community support is rare (5 per 100 000 versus 137 nationally), suggesting a deliberate shift away from block contracts.
Data for 2025 show very small but broadly typical numbers of older people seeking help with assessments, charging, legal issues, or safeguarding. Although the absolute figures are tiny, they matter: timely advice can prevent crises and reduce later demand. Maintaining visibility of these front-door services in a dense urban setting will help the council reach residents who might otherwise disengage.
Southend’s slightly older profile, coupled with average request rates but high numbers in long-term care, points to a system that reacts strongly once need is identified. Continuing to expand personalised community options could divert more people from residential settings, easing future cost pressures. However, the shortage of local nursing provision is a strategic risk as the very old population grows. Close partnership with providers to increase nursing capacity, alongside investment in reablement and preventive services, will position the area better for the next decade.
✨ ✅ ❌When government support falls short, unpaid carers step in to provide care. However, many struggle with burnout, financial pressure, lack of social contact, and a lack of support. This section explores the number of unpaid carers, their increasing workload, and what forms of support are available.
Carers play a vital role in supporting vulnerable adults, often stepping in to provide care when professional services are unavailable or insufficient. The percentage of carers receiving direct payments highlights financial empowerment, the number of carers accessing services reflects local authority outreach, and the number turning to charities underscores unmet needs. Together, these data points reveal systemic strengths and weaknesses: low direct payment uptake may push carers toward charities, while effective services can reduce dependence on charitable support. Understanding these metrics enables targeted interventions to ensure carers receive the recognition and resources they deserve.
Unpaid carers play a crucial role in supporting vulnerable adults, often stepping in to provide care when professional services are unavailable or insufficient. Understanding the number of unpaid carers in a local authority can be complicated. On the one hand, a relatively high proportion might be indicative of not enough being done by the local authority, and/or a strong community. On the other hand, a relatively lower number can mean good service provision, lower need, lower availability to look after family, or a problem with reporting.
Still, understanding the number of unpaid carers is a baseline number that must be considered.
NOMIS NM_2213_1
These values are widely considered to be an underestimate. See this report from Carers UK for more information.
August 2021 - Patient with dementia who lives in a shared lives setting. Carer had been requesting respite from the council since September 2020. Croydon Social Prescriber helped with a referral to the local authority in March 2021. Assessment conducted, with the promise they would come back with support, which did not happen. 25 August, social prescriber used the chatbot to find the right legal wording for the situation. The email was sent at 4.52pm that day. At 5.12pm the council contacted the carer to discuss the respite. This was the impact of one letter, addressed to a senior team.
This case study is based on real data from Croydon. Have a story to tell? Let us know, and we might display it here!
Social contact is important for carers’ well-being, as it can help reduce feelings of isolation and loneliness. Understanding the level of social contact that carers have can help local authorities identify areas where additional support and resources may be needed. For example, a low level of social contact may indicate a need for more social activities or support groups for carers, while a high level of social contact may suggest that carers have a strong support network.
Survey of Adult Carers in England (SACE) - question 11
The type of support available to carers can vary significantly, impacting their ability to provide care effectively. Understanding the types of support available can help identify areas where additional resources may be needed. For example, a high number of carers receiving respite care may indicate a need for more support with caregiving responsibilities, while a low number of carers receiving financial support may suggest a need for additional financial assistance.
ASCFR/SALT Sheet T47
Access to information is crucial for carers to navigate the social care system effectively. Understanding how easy it is for carers to get information can help local authorities identify areas where additional support and resources may be needed. For example, a high number of carers finding it difficult to get information may indicate a need for improved communication and support services, while a low number of carers finding it difficult to get information may suggest that existing services are effective.
Would you like social care information? Try our Chatbot!
Survey of Adult Carers in England (SACE) - question 17
Note: these values are a work in progress… expect these numbers to go up
Access Social Care and other Helplines help people with information, advice, and support related to social care. Understanding the types of calls received by carers can highlight areas where additional support and resources may be needed. For example, a high number of calls related to financial support may indicate a need for more financial assistance for carers, while a high number of calls related to respite care may suggest a need for additional support with caregiving responsibilities.
It is important to note that, just as in the previous section, low numbers of requests might indicate that people don’t know where to get help, don’t feel they can get (or deserve) help, or other outreach problems. This is particularly important because we often work with people where the role of a carer is not recognised, or where the carer themselves does not recognise their role.
Access Social Care casework, AccessAva data, and helpline partner submissions
In 2021 around 8,313 residents out of every 100,000 said they were unpaid carers. With a mid-year population of about 180,700, this is roughly 15,000 people. The rate is a little higher than the England figure of 8,204 per 100,000. Southend-on-Sea is a dense, fully urban area with small pockets of high and low deprivation. Such places often have more long-term illness and smaller informal networks, so family members may step in to give care. A seaside town can also attract older residents who need support, further raising the carer count.
In the 2024 survey 38.6 % of local carers said they had as much social contact as they wanted. Nationally only 29.3 % felt this way. Carers here also find it easier to get information: 69.2 % reported that it is easy to locate service details, compared with 59.3 % across England. Two factors may explain this. The council offers far more “information, advice and signposting” than most areas, at 625 residents per 100,000, well above the national 339. A dense urban setting means services are close to one another, so carers can meet support workers, charities, and other carers more easily, helping them feel connected.
While signposting is strong, direct financial help is rare. Only 11 carers per 100,000 receive a full direct payment, against 150 in England. The same low figure is seen for support commissioned solely by the council, compared with 102 nationally. Respite that is delivered to the cared-for person sits just below the England rate (69 versus 70). “No direct support” is also less common than average, suggesting that most carers are at least pointed to some form of help, even if not a paid service.
The council appears to have chosen an information-led model. High signposting can be delivered quickly and at lower cost than personal budgets or regular home-care hours. Carers then feel better informed and less isolated, as the survey results show. Yet the low use of direct payments and managed budgets may signal unmet need for hands-on relief or for flexible cash that lets a carer buy help that suits the family. If demand for intensive care grows—likely in an area with a sizeable older group—current provision might not stretch far enough.
Southend-on-Sea already supports a larger share of carers than average and does well on contact and information. To keep carers healthy and able to go on caring, policy could now focus on balancing advice with more tangible aid. Offering short breaks, small grants or shared-lives schemes would spread help beyond signposting while still managing costs. Close monitoring is wise, because even a slight rise in chronic illness rates, combined with tight housing and mixed deprivation, could push many of the 15,000 carers towards burnout. Earlier, practical support would protect both them and the people they look after.
✨ ✅ ❌Care providers are essential for delivering social care services, including home care agencies and care homes. The quality of care they provide can vary significantly, impacting the well-being of service users. This section examines the number and types of care providers, their quality ratings, and some of the difficulties of maintaining high standards. Understanding these metrics is crucial for ensuring that vulnerable individuals receive high-quality care.
The number and types of care providers in a local authority can impact the availability and quality of social care services. Understanding the distribution of care providers directly influences people’s ability to get the care they need.
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) rates care providers based on their quality of care, safety, and effectiveness. Understanding the quality ratings of care providers can help local authorities identify areas where additional support and resources may be needed. For example, a high number of care providers with low ratings may indicate a need for improved training and support, while a high number of care providers with high ratings may suggest that existing services are effective.
Framework rates are the agreed prices that local authorities pay care providers for social care services, such as home care and residential care. These rates are crucial because they determine the affordability, availability, and quality of care in a city. If rates are too low, providers may struggle to sustain services, leading to workforce shortages, poor care quality, and limited access for those relying on council-funded care.
Understanding framework rates helps assess whether local authorities are adequately funding social care, ensuring fair pay for care workers, and maintaining a sustainable care market that meets residents’ needs.
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Several providers are finding it increasingly difficult to stay in business, and sometimes several providers collapse at once. For example, when pay rises are approved without consultation and effective immediately, providers may not be able to afford to pay their staff. This can cause a chain-effect which leads to collapse in the market, and a lack of care for those who need it.
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Workforce turnover rate is a measure of the number of staff leaving a care provider over a specific period. High turnover rates can indicate issues with staff retention, such as low pay, poor working conditions, or lack of training and support. Understanding workforce turnover rates can help local authorities identify areas where additional support and resources may be needed to improve staff retention and ensure high-quality care services.
NOTE: This data series is based on regional data
Staff retention is crucial for maintaining high-quality care services. Understanding the challenges faced by care providers in retaining staff can help local authorities identify areas where additional support and resources may be needed. For example, a high number of care providers struggling to retain staff may indicate a need for improved training and support, while a low number of care providers facing retention challenges may suggest that existing services are effective.
This dataset describes the results of a survey asking care providers about their challenges in retaining staff.
NOTE: This data series is based on regional data
Workforce_survey_data_tables, Tab 6_2
Vacancy rate is a measure of the number of unfilled positions within a care provider over a specific period. High vacancy rates can indicate issues with staff recruitment, such as low pay, poor working conditions, or lack of training and support. Understanding vacancy rates can help local authorities identify areas where additional support and resources may be needed to improve staff recruitment and ensure high-quality care services.
Recruiting staff is essential for maintaining high-quality care services, and for backfilling staff when they leave. Understanding the challenges faced by care providers in recruiting staff can help local authorities identify areas where additional support and resources may be needed. For example, a high number of care providers struggling to recruit staff may indicate a need for improved training and support, or can point to a systemic problem, such as low pay, poor working conditions, or not enough people interested in this job type.
Staff recruitment is important as it’s one of the areas that have levers to pull outside of social care, for example, by changing how many visas are awarded to social care workers.
NOTE: This data series is based on regional data
Workforce_survey_data_tables, Tab 6_2
Southend-on-Sea is a dense, fully urban area of about 182,000 people. The city has 4,336 residents for every square kilometre, almost twice the national average. It is a little more deprived than England as a whole and shows a wide mix of richer and poorer streets. These factors shape both the demand for care and the way services can be organised.
The city has 54 community-based adult social care services and 77 residential homes. Because the population is smaller than that of an average English council, the headline counts sit below the national means of 64 and 91. When population size is taken into account the picture changes: Southend-on-Sea offers about 30 community services and 42 residential homes per 100,000 residents, compared with roughly 17 and 24 per 100,000 in England. High population density allows many small providers to operate within a short travel distance, so residents have a broad choice of settings without the need for long journeys.
One in five local providers (20.6 %) are rated “requires improvement” or “inadequate”, against 16.8 % nationally. The rate is only four percentage points higher, yet in a dense city this can translate into entire neighbourhoods where the closest home or agency is below standard. Slightly higher deprivation may also add pressure, as providers work with clients who have more complex social and health needs.
Staff turnover is 23.9 %, almost identical to the national figure, but other workforce signals are less stable. The vacancy rate stands at 9.6 %, one point above the England average, and around 83 % of managers report that recruiting staff has become harder, compared with 80 % nationally. Seventy-one per cent say retention is more difficult, versus 68 % for England. A tight labour market in south-east England, together with high local living costs, is likely to lie behind these gaps.
Although Southend-on-Sea has many providers per head, the higher share of poor ratings and the visible difficulties in filling posts suggest that quantity does not automatically ensure quality. A fragmented market of small providers can struggle to offer clear career paths or match wages available in other sectors, driving vacancies and pushing experienced staff to leave. High staff churn tends to weaken continuity of care, which is often reflected in inspection outcomes. In turn, lower ratings make recruitment still harder, creating a cycle that is difficult to break.
The city’s compact geography is an advantage: residents can reach several services without travelling far, and care commissioners have room to develop neighbourhood-based support. However, action is needed to lift quality and stabilise the workforce. Options include joint recruitment campaigns across providers, shared training budgets and stronger links with local colleges. Given the mild but real level of deprivation, commissioners may also need to target extra help towards areas where poor-quality services overlap with higher social need. Careful use of data to steer improvement visits, mentorship and capital grants could raise inspection grades and, over time, ease the staffing challenges that currently hold back the sector.
✨ ✅ ❌Historically, hospital delays have been due in large part, to the inability to discharge patients into social care. We no longer have DTOC data, but we can still look at the number of hospital delays and the number of facilities requiring improvement.
CQC, as the regulator of health and social care services in England, is beginning to rate Local Authorities on their social care provision. Understanding the CQC rating of a local authority should be used as the most official evaluation of service care provision. For example, a low rating may indicate a need for improved service delivery, while a high rating may suggest that existing services are effective.
Hospital delays can have a significant impact on patient care and outcomes, and are in large part the result of not having invested sufficiently in social care. Understanding the number of hospital delays in a local authority can be a sympthom of a poorly working social care sector. For example, a high number of hospital delays may indicate a need for improved discharge planning and coordination, not enough places to discharge people to, lack of sufficient staff to assess patients, or a lack of care providers.
Discharge-Ready-Date-monthly-data-webfile-November-2024, Tab UTLA Acceptable
This metric illustrates how long patients are delayed in hospital before being discharged. Higher average delays mean that patients are spending more time in hospital than necessary, which can lead to increased costs, reduced bed availability, and poorer patient outcomes. This also means that the beds are not available for people that might desperately need them for life-saving procedures.
Discharge-Ready-Date-monthly-data-webfile-November-2024, Tab UTLA Acceptable
Delayed Transfer of Care (DTOC) refers to the time between a patient being declared medically fit for discharge and actually leaving the hospital. Understanding the number of DTOCs in a local authority can help identify precisely where the social care system is failing.
Unfortunately, this dataset is no longer being generated.
Reablement is a short-term service that helps people regain independence and confidence after a period of illness or injury. Understanding the number of people receiving reablement services can help local authorities identify areas where additional support and resources may be needed. For example, a high number of people receiving reablement services may indicate a need for more support with daily living activities, while a low number of people receiving reablement services may suggest that existing services are effective.
Coming soon!
Service user satisfaction is a key indicator of the quality of social care services. Understanding service user satisfaction can help local authorities identify areas where additional support and resources may be needed. For example, a low level of service user satisfaction may indicate a need for improved service delivery, while a high level of service user satisfaction may suggest that existing services are effective.
It is important to note that the people surveyed are already receiving service care. Notably absent are all the people that are not yet lucky enough to be receiving care.
Personal Social Services Adult Social Care Survey, question 1
Access to information is crucial for people using social care services to navigate the system effectively. Understanding how easy it is for people to get information can help local authorities identify areas where additional support and resources may be needed. For example, a high number of people finding it difficult to get information may indicate a need for improved communication and support services, while a low number of people finding it difficult to get information may suggest that existing services are effective.
Would you like social care information? Try our Chatbot!
Personal Social Services Adult Social Care Survey, question 13
An ombudsman is a person who has been appointed to look into complaints about companies and organisations. The number of cases received and decided by the Ombudsman is important because it provides insight into the volume of complaints about a local authority’s social care services and how effectively these complaints are being addressed. The number of cases received indicates the level of dissatisfaction or systemic issues within a council’s care provision, while the number of cases decided shows how efficiently the Ombudsman is processing and resolving complaints. A large gap between the two may suggest delays in complaint handling, leaving individuals waiting.
It is important to note that contacting the Ombudsman is widely considered a last resort, often discouraged, and sometimes penalised.
Almost every Southend resident (99.8 %) is discharged from a hospital that the Care Quality Commission judges to be acceptable, well above the England figure of 89 %. Delays after the decision to discharge are rare: only 2 % of discharges are held up, compared with 12.3 % nationally, and the average wait is about 0.09 days, one-eighth of the national 0.7-day norm. In a compact, fully urban area of 182,000 people this suggests that community services, transport and social care packages are closely co-ordinated. Faster discharge keeps beds free and reduces the risk of hospital-acquired harm, an important gain for a city whose population density (4,336 residents per km²) is nearly twice the national mean.
Satisfaction with care and support stands at 64.3 %, only a fraction below the England score of 64.7 %. Finding information about services is reported as “easy” by 69 % of users, slightly better than the national 68.2 %. These steady, average-level results contrast with the borough’s strong discharge record, hinting that day-to-day domiciliary and residential care may not yet feel as responsive as hospital pathways do. Local deprivation sits just below the national midpoint (mean decile 5.5) but internal inequality is high; pockets of need in more deprived wards may pull satisfaction down even while overall performance looks solid.
A separate survey (NatCen) suggests that 57 % of respondents express some dissatisfaction with social care. Although no national comparator is given, the figure is high enough to merit attention. High density living can magnify issues such as staff turnover, limited space for home adaptations and pressure on parking for visiting carers, all of which can colour resident views even when headline indicators are good.
The Local Government & Social Care Ombudsman received 4.39 cases per 100,000 residents in 2024, a shade below the England average of 4.45. For Southend this equals about eight complaints in the year, roughly half the raw number expected for an average-sized authority. Decisions issued (3.84 per 100,000) also sit lower than the national mean of 4.12. Fewer complaints may reflect genuine satisfaction, but could also point to limited awareness of escalation routes; the reasonably strong “ease of finding information” score makes the former explanation more likely.
Rapid discharge, low delay and modest complaint volumes show that Southend’s health and care system works well at critical transition points. The next step is to convert this operational strength into higher everyday satisfaction, especially among residents in its more deprived neighbourhoods. Targeted user engagement, investment in community-based staff and continued clear communication about available support should help lift perceived quality to the same high level already seen in hospital pathways.
✨ ✅ ❌We need to understand how much money is being spent on social care, and what this provides. First, let’s look at values reported by local authorities.
Gross Current Expenditure (2023-24) captures the total operational cost of services, indicating overall demand and financial commitment. This includes spending on residential and non-residential care, direct payments, and other social care services. Understanding gross expenditure helps assess the scale of social care provision and financial pressures on local authorities.
ASCFR/SALT Sheet T3
This figure reflects the net cost of social care provision to the local authority, indicating the extent of financial support required to meet service demands. Understanding net expenditure helps assess the financial sustainability of social care services and the commitment level of the local authority.
ASCFR/SALT Sheet T3
Client Contributions, otherwise known as “Charging”, show the extent to which service users offset costs. Understanding client contributions helps assess the financial burden on individuals and the local authority, highlighting the need for fair and equitable funding mechanisms.
It is important to note that not all local authorities charge for social care services, and that charging can be a barrier to accessing care for some individuals.
ASCFR/SALT Sheet T3
Income from NHS reflects external funding and collaboration with the health sector. Understanding NHS contributions helps understand the level of integration between health and social care.
ASCFR/SALT Sheet T3
Budget Cuts indicate financial constraints and potential service reductions. Sometimes, budget cuts are explicit, but other times, they aren’t mentioned directly, making tracking this information difficult to access.
As such, this data is not consistently available for all local authorities.
Access Social Care have made a series of Freedom of Information requests about the government’s own assessment of sufficiency of social care funding. The social care sector is in crisis, yet the government refuses to disclose how it determines funding sufficiency. Without transparency, there is little accountability, no independent scrutiny to improve decision-making, and government trust heavily impacted. Evidence from across the sector indicates a severe funding gap, but without open data, meaningful reform remains impossible. True solutions require honesty about the scale of the problem to then work towards a fair and equitable funding model.
The government appears to know how much money is required for social care, and yet they are not making that known.
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Southend-on-Sea spends about £47.98 million for every 100,000 residents on adult social care. When we apply this figure to the current population, the gross bill is close to £87 million. This is a little above the England average of £47.76 million per 100,000, so the city is putting slightly more money into care than the typical council.
After taking away income from charges and partner bodies, net spending falls to around £70 million, or £38.75 million per 100,000 people. This sits below the national net figure of £40.47 million. In plain terms, the council manages to bring its own contribution down by drawing in more money from service users, while receiving less help from the NHS.
Client contributions reach £9.23 million per 100,000 residents, roughly £16.8 million in cash. This is one quarter higher than the national rate. The pattern suggests that more local people pay fees, or that charges are set at a higher level. With pockets of relative wealth beside areas of need, the council may feel able to raise charges, yet the policy could deter some residents from asking for help.
NHS support is only £4.68 million per 100,000 people, about £8.5 million in total, well below the national level of £7.88 million. Lower health funding can leave the council carrying costs that in other areas sit with integrated care boards. This gap risks weaker joint working and may limit investment in services that reduce hospital stays.
Southend-on-Sea is compact and fully urban, with 4,336 residents per square kilometre, almost twice the England average. Urban density can push up demand for home care and community outreach, but it can also allow short travel times for staff, saving money. The city’s mean deprivation score is 5.5, a shade poorer than the national 5.9, and the spread between rich and poor areas is wide. Such mixed deprivation often leads to very different needs within a small space: some neighbourhoods require intensive support, while others contribute larger fees.
Spending that is only fractionally above the national average may be tight when set against higher client need linked to deprivation and an ageing coastal population. The reliance on client income helps the council hold down its own net spend, yet it shifts risk onto residents if personal budgets run out. At the same time, the low NHS contribution hints at limited pooled budgets, which could weaken preventive work that benefits both sectors.
If Southend-on-Sea wants to control future costs without raising charges further, deeper partnership with health services looks essential. Extra NHS investment could support re-ablement and step-down care, cutting both hospital and care-home bills. The council may also wish to review how charges affect take-up in the most deprived wards. Finally, with population growth flat since 2019, any rise in demand will come mainly from changing age and health profiles, not from more people. Planning now for those shifts will help the city stay within budget while meeting need.
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