COUNCILLORS have pledged to protect vulnerable older people following a charity’s warning that social care and support in England has reached “breaking point”.

Hundreds of thousands of older people who need social care are not receiving formal support from the private or public sector, according to Age UK.

The charity has warned that the figure of 800,000 is likely to reach a million by 2014 as a result of cuts.

Age UK’s charity director Michelle Mitchell said: “Care and support in England has reached breaking point, putting older people at risk and their families under intolerable strain. The figures we have uncovered beggar belief.”

Age UK’s Care in Crisis report found that half of councils provided support to people found to have “moderate” needs in 2005/2006 but that figure dropped to 18 per cent in 2011/12.

Report author Andrew Harrop said: “There has been unprecedented debate on the future of care – both its long-term funding and the ‘transformation’ of council provision today. But in the meantime local authority spending decisions have changed the facts on the ground, with a significant deterioration in services for older people.”

Commenting on the report, Cllr Andrew Cattaway, Dorset County Council’s cabinet member for adult social care, said: “Obviously this is a concern to us. We are doing our best to protect the people we need to look after. We have cut our adult services budget less than in most other areas. Cuts are not the only issue here, it’s also down to an increasing elderly population.

“A Royal Commission is currently working on new ways to structure and fund care for elderly people.”

Cllr Lynda Price, Bournemouth council’s cabinet member for social care, said: “Our aim is to support people in their homes for as long as possible; because they are healthier and happier there and it costs less. Technology is also being developed to enable people to remain in their own homes longer.

“We don’t want them to feel isolated and we are not looking to make cuts in this area.”