HOME care workers in Blaenau Gwent are getting a £1-per-hour pay rise to deal with the cost-of-living crisis and make sure the county’s most vulnerable residents get the care they need.

At a meeting of Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council on Thursday, July 21 the pay rise was discussed.

The report says that across Blaenau Gwent there are  six domiciliary care providers, delivering 5,300 hours per week and employing 270 carers.

This figure has decreased by 14 per cent in the workforce since February when there were 311 carers.

Cabinet member for social services, Cllr Haydn Trollope explained that the report was before the council as an “urgent” item because of the need.

Cllr Trollope said: “It’s well documented that we have a national crisis across health and social care in relation to pressures on the system and the availability of domiciliary care workers.

“This is impacting the ability of social services to meet the demand of providing care at home.”

He added that care bosses were telling the council that their staff were struggling to pay for fuel due to the escalating prices.

Cllr Trollope said that providing the extra money would be a “Gwent wide short-term solution for six months.”

He added that the £103,000 this is estimated to cost the council would come from under-spends and a “service cost pressure reserve.”

“This is to make sure that our most vulnerable residents are seen to,” said Cllr Trollope.

Council leader Cllr Steve Thomas stressed: “This is us trying to protect the sector now, because if it falls we’d be in a hell of a mess, as would other authorities.”

Cllr Malcom Day asked whether travelling expenses for care workers working for Blaenau Gwent and private providers would also be increased.

Head of adult social care, Alyson Hoskins said: “The terms and conditions do vary across the external providers and in-house.”

She explained that care workers working for private care agencies received between 20 to 30p a mile while council staff received 45p a mile.

Ms Hoskins said: “By giving this additional £1 an hour, that will enable the providers to bring the mileage rates up to 45p per mile, which is why I’ve stressed in the report that this is an immediate response in the here and now.

But she added that, from conversations with council own staff, she was concerned that even the higher 45p rate is “potentially not sufficient”.

She believed the issues would need to be looked at more “strategically” in the future.

Cllr George Humphreys said: “It’s an injustice what they get paid for the work they do.”

“These people are priceless.

“We should be there to help and support them – it would be catastrophic to lose these people.

“The pay structure needs to be  addressed.”

The pay increase was approved unanimously and will be reviewed in December.

It is expected that the other local authorities in Gwent will also do this.