Study to review and update RNF allocation formulae for adult social care
- Principal investigator(s):
- Julien Forder, Jose-Luis Fernandez
- Team:
- LG Futures with Julien Forder, Jose-Luis Fernandez and Karen Jones
- Start year:
- 2012
- End year:
- 2015
- Funder:
- Department of Health via LG Futures
- Partners:
- LG Futures
Local authorities are responsible for providing social care services, but the majority of their funding comes from central government. Currently, funding is allocated through the use of two formulae; for younger adults (aged 18-64) and older people (aged 65+). The aim of the research is to review the most appropriate basis for distributing funds to councils and to produce up-to-date calculations/formulae to guide funding allocations to councils for adult social care, capable of being used from 2015/16 onwards. Consideration will be given to improving upon aspects of the existing funding formulae: increasing the number of authorities contributing to the research and collection of more robust small area level data. There are two secondary objectives to this research. 1. To review the current relative needs formulae and consider its appropriateness as a future tool for social care resource allocation. This aim also involves considering the principles that should guide resource allocation, including among other things: equity, objectivity, transparency and feasibility. We will explicitly consider whether a normative approach or normative adjustments can and should be made to the formulae, where value judgements about the appropriate level of resources are incorporated into the criteria for allocation. We will also consider whether and how the implementation of a new system of funding of adult social care will impact on the existing distribution of resources to councils. 2. To determine the best empirical method for estimating the parameters of the allocation system/formulae. The chosen methods will be those which allow the formulae to reflect as closely as possible the key allocation principles noted above.