Hertfordshire adult carers could get 10% pay rise - county council

Hertfordshire councillors hope that by increasing carers' salaries 10-fold, it will help the authority recruit and retain staff

Adult carers in Hertfordshire could be in line for a pay rise of 9.68%.

Hertfordshire County Council's Conservative leadership hope the increase will help the authority recruit and retain staff.

The council is yet to agree its final £1.04bn budget for 2023-24, but it has been recommended senior decision-makers approve the pay rise.

The wage increase matches a government plan to increase the National Living Wage from £9.50 to £10.42 in April.

Councillors on the Adult Care, Health and Wellbeing Panel said they "welcomed" investment into wages for care staff, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

Chris Badger, the council's executive director for adult care services, told the panel last week: "What we've tried to do is look at what the National Living Wage is going up by.

"That's set out by the government and that's going up... and our percentage broadly equals that uplift.

"While most people working in care in Hertfordshire, because of previous investments, are above the National Living Wage, we're keen to keep that differential between Living Wage and care jobs to keep them attractive economically."

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The council plans to cut £195,000 from the adult social care, learning and development budget through "efficiency" savings, it was heard.

Mr Badger said those savings would not "impact delivery" of training opportunities, nor reduce the council's training offer.

The £195,000 cut is one of several "efficiencies" which the council said it hoped to make in 2023-24, which add up to an anticipated £9.65m saving across a 12-month period.

Liberal Democrats nationally have called this week for a higher minimum wage for social care workers to help tackle staff shortages.

It said carers were not valued enough, and vacancies had left the NHS "on its knees".

The government said it was working to reduce vacancies, and is increasing funding for social care in England.

Councillor Tony Kingsbury, who has responsible for adult care, health and wellbeing at Hertfordshire County Council, said: "I am content with this budget.

"I think compared with other budgets in the council, it's fair and we have the money there to do the things which [the report] points out."