The cost of supporting vulnerable Islanders to live independently is expected to rise this year and will potentially go up again next year.
In the 2022/23 budget papers, published on Wednesday, the leading Alliance group revealed plans to generate £101,000, by raising the price of the Wightcare service.
It provides technology, living aids, round-the-clock monitoring, welfare calls and other solutions, to ensure those who need help can remain in their homes.
The council says charges have not gone up since 2018. Now, fees could rise by up to 13%, in some cases.
A 36% increase would make it break even, but councillors admit that cannot be achieved in single price hike.
Which charges could increase?
- The one-off installation charge for the service from £80 to £90
- Monitoring from £6.80 to £7.70
- Monitoring and response from £9.72 to £11
- Telecare from £11.25 to £12.73
Leading Isle of Wight Council members say the current charges are not reflective of the actual cost of the service and argue it requires an extensive subsidy.
Overall, £3million in savings must be made when the authority meets on 23rd February, along with a likely rise of 2.99%, including for adult social care.
No rise since 2018, and now above inflation rise and it still wont make a profit !
This just clearly says “this council are unfit to run things”
You can bet that they will get an above inflation pay rise.
And yet another strike at the most vulnerable. How much lower can this council go? They say the rubbish falls to the bottom of the pit, how absolutely true.
So who exactly are ‘the Alliance Group’ is it actually ‘the Council’ or a private company !! ?
Might as well be the council, in fact no more than the council’s mouth piece. Mistakenly, they were elected by the voters to represent them, something that, quite clearly, they fail to do. Maybe it it time to get rid of the term ‘councillor’, call them ‘representative’ and make them do just that, viz represent those who voted them in. More likely pigs will grow wings and fly first.
If people want to live forever, and don’t want to burden there relatives, and don’t want to sell there homes to help out financially to help support there old age and illness’s and want to leave a substantial inheritance to there baby boomer children, good luck to them.
But why should the tax payers, pull up the slack.
Very selfish, with a superiority complex to match.
Those that have never invested their money during their working life, or lived on benefits and paid nothing into the system and have no home to sell, get it all for free then!…
Why don’t you and all those like you, target those that should really be targeted….you could even open your mind as far has France, assuming you have a mind…
Lol, why get personal ?
All I am stating is WHY should I pay part of MY taxes for YOUR elderly relatives, just so YOU can inherent there small fortune.
Money goes to Money.
Wtf about France ?
jollop – why should someone who has worked hard, lived frugally, paid their taxes, saved up, paid off a house and got decent pensions be penalised for all that hard work and effort by being expected to pay for care, whilst some lazy, lifetime dole sponging dosser, that has been a burden on society all their lives, gets it all for free, just like they have done all their lives.
The government is faced with two choices to level the playing field.
refuse any care at all, to those sponging layabouts that haven’t prepared for old age, or remove the requirement to have to sell your home, spend your savings and be fully impoverished, before the state pays for care.
services such as wightcare charge, however, it still isn’t fair, as those on benefits can use benefit money to pay, whereas those that have their own cash, have to stump up.
next – inheritance tax needs to go – since when did it become ok for the state to steal a chunk of your money before those that you choose to give it to, get it.
I couldn’t agree with you more, thats my point, well said…
YOUR elderly relatives, YOUR inheritance, MY taxes.
Money goes to money.
CAN PAY / WON’T PAY
charges should be increased to the user to make the service self sufficient and not a burden on the other taxpayers.
It’s the none taxpayers that are the problem….everything is for free for them…
That idiot chain ferry could save a few quid, infact it could save millions of pounds if the people that spent our money had a few brain cells…
What’s happened to compassion
It died, contrary to the hope that this will be one good thing coming out of world pandemic.
Amazing how they can use the words ‘supporting’, ‘vulnerable’ and ‘13% rise’ in one sentence. It needs to be noted that this is out of whack compared to inflation rate.
There are other providers of similar, cheaper and are profit making for private business, what makes Council one expensive and loss making ?