Report for Enable shows how social care is an economic engine

Enable Group has published a new report on Scotland’s care sector, commissioned from BiGGAR Economics.

The report –Scotland’s Care Sector: An Economic Driver –  marks a significant step towards a new narrative on social care by demonstrating that far from being a burden on the public finances, the social care sector contributes more than £5.1bn Gross Value Added (GVA) to the Scottish economy and supports some 300,000 jobs.

The report’s key findings include that:

• The social care sector’s direct economic impact is more than £3.3bn, with an additional indirect economic impact (through supply chains and supporting industries) of £800m and an induced impact (from employees spending their wages) of £1.1bn
• 206,410 jobs (155,330 Full Time Equivalents (FTEs)) are directly provided in the wider social care sector, with an additional 49,510 jobs (37,260 FTEs) in suppliers and supporting industries and 41,100 jobs (30,930 FTEs) supported by social care employees’ spending in the economy.
• Raising pay for Scotland’s frontline social care workers will provide a significant boost to the national economy – generating additional tax revenues, reducing the need for in-work benefits, and enabling higher spending in the real economy.
• Many of the National Performance Framework outcomes and indicators can be positively aligned with high quality social care from all perspectives; the person using care; the care workforce; communities; businesses; and society as a whole.
• Social care has the potential to be a “Superpolicy” because it can achieve positive outcomes across a wide range of areas without unintended negative outcomes.

Graeme Blackett, Director of BiGGAR Economics said: “The care sector is often discussed in terms of the challenges of funding it. However, this study shows that we should recognise the significant contribution that the care sector makes to the Scottish economy and how it can be a driver of inclusive sustainable growth as the xScottish population ages, if wage levels reflected the value of care to society.“

For more details see Enable Group’s Blog