Labour is calling for a coordinated plan for the social care sector and urgent action to provide PPE and testing for social care staff.

Barbara Keeley, Shadow Minister for Mental Health and Social Care and Jonathan Ashworth, Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care have today written to Matt Hancock to outline Labour’s concerns about the lack of a coordinated approach to tackling the Covid-19 pandemic in the social care sector. 

The letter sets out the following concerns:

• The inadequate provision of PPE for social care staff following deliveries this week and the urgent need to address this crisis in the provision of protective equipment
• The need for an urgent programme of Covid-19 testing for social care staff to avoid high levels of staff in self-isolation
• The need for clear guidance around Covid-19 testing for care home residents and those discharged from hospitals to care homes, in order to control the spread of the virus. 

Labour is calling for a coordinated plan to help the social care system deal with the covid-19 pandemic as well as urgent action to address the inadequacies in PPE provision and Covid-19 testing in social care settings.