Burnham pushes ahead with National Care Service blueprint
Prime Minister Andy Burnham accelerates Baroness Louise Casey’s review and outlines Labour’s plan for a National Care Service, while Plaid Cymru pledges similar reforms for Wales.
Prime Minister Andy Burnham announced today that the cross‑bench peer Baroness Louise Casey will bring forward her long‑awaited review of social care from 2028 to 2027, promising a blueprint for a National Care Service that would deliver consistent care across England.
Speaking at a Labour conference, Burnham said the accelerated timetable was needed “to rise to this challenge with the urgency it requires”.
The prime minister added that the forthcoming review would set out how the party intends to replace the patchwork of local arrangements with a single, nationally‑run service.
Labour’s manifesto already pledges a National Care Service that would integrate health and social care, standardise staff terms and conditions and eliminate the “postcode lottery” that currently determines the quality of support.
In Wales, Plaid Cymru’s election platform contains a parallel commitment, promising to task a new National Office for Care and Support with developing national guidelines on commissioning, data collection and needs assessments.
The party also pledged that the Real Living Wage would become the minimum rate for social‑care workers in Wales.
Professor Derek Feeley, former chair of the Independent Review of Adult Social Care in Scotland, welcomed the proposals but warned that a national service alone would not solve the sector’s deeper problems.
Feeley, who recommended a National Care Service to the Scottish Government in February 2021, disclosed his “declaration of interest” before outlining his view that the current system “is perfectly designed to get us the results it gets”.
He argued that the existing model produces “unwarranted variation, crisis intervention (at best) and an over‑reliance on market‑based solutions”.
Feeley said a National Care Service would bring “national level integration with the NHS and clearer accountability and assurance for Ministers, parliament and the public”.
He added that a single service would allow “national terms and conditions for all staff” and act as a vehicle to “scale up and spread best practice, which is almost impossible in the current system”.
The professor highlighted four additional reforms he deems essential.
First, he called for a shift in narrative, describing social care not as a “burden on society” but as “a positive and productive investment in our economy, our citizens and our human rights”.
He cited the Independent Review’s section titled ‘A new narrative’, which contrasts “old thinking” that viewed care as a crisis‑only service with “new thinking” that frames it as preventative, collaborative and rights‑based.
Second, Feeley warned of a widening “implementation gap” between policy intent and service reality, noting that social care lacks “science‑based implementation and improvement methods”.
Third, he urged a “radically amplify the voices of lived experience”, insisting that people who use care services and unpaid carers must be represented in decision‑making.
Finally, he stressed the need for investment in the workforce and early‑intervention programmes, pointing to pilots for older adults that have shown “strong results at proof of concept stage” but have stalled for lack of funding.
Burnham echoed many of these points, stating that “neither should social care continue as the poor relation of the NHS”.
He pledged parity of esteem for health and care, warning that achieving it will require “some difficult decisions”.
The prime minister concluded that “the time for change is now”, urging Parliament to act swiftly on the forthcoming Casey review.
Stakeholders across the UK will be watching closely as the accelerated review promises to shape the future of social care policy in England, while Wales prepares its own legislative route under Plaid Cymru’s proposals.