Public health grant “insufficient” to tackle Shropshire’s long-term pressures
Shropshire Council will receive £12.8m from the Government as part of the public health settlement grant for 2022/23.
This puts the council as the lowest-funded council in the region, and the 17th lowest in the country.
In total, the grant to councils across the UK is £3.417 billion, and is ringfenced for use on public health functions.
Simon Jones, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member for adult social care and public health, said:-
We are grateful to receive the Government’s public health settlement grant for 2022/23, but with no real-terms increase, it shows little understanding of the long-term impacts of the pandemic on our residents.
It is also bitterly disappointing that Shropshire remains the lowest-funded council in the region, with £12.8m allocated for 2022/23. This puts us as the 17th lowest-funded council in the country with £39 per head, compared to £73 per head in Telford & Wrekin, and £67 nationally. Despite the significant impact of the pandemic on our rural population, and an estimated 57% of our residents who have a vulnerability, there has been no attempt to level up the funding gap to areas such as Shropshire.
There is a massive job to be done going forwards and, unfortunately, the public health settlement is insufficient to tackle the long-term pressures that we are facing.
Rachel Robinson, Shropshire Council’s director of public health, said:-
The pandemic has proved how vitally important public health services are; not only in protecting the health of our population, but for also preventing illness, working to reduce inequalities, and promoting good health and wellbeing.
Over the last two years public health teams have worked tirelessly to help reduce the spread of coronavirus and keep our communities safe. Our work around the pandemic in Shropshire is not yet over, and we also remain committed to supporting a healthier Shropshire: addressing the increased health and wellbeing needs, and the inequalities which have been deepened by the pandemic. But this requires the right level of resourcing.
