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“There needs to be a re-focus in mental health policy away from medicalisation and mental ill health to prevention, early intervention and mental wellness."

Councils are working hard to ensure all people, including those with disabilities and their carers, receive high quality, reliable care and support, as well as information and advice, to help them lead independent and fulfilling lives.

“Choosing care for a loved one is a major and often stressful decision - especially when they have to be made quickly – as it has health and wellbeing implications for the person who needs caring for."

“Despite significant funding and resource pressures, councils are fulfilling their commitments while also delivering effective budget management."

"When the £2 billion for adult social care was announced by the Government in last year’s Spring Budget, it said this could be spent in three ways – meeting adult social care needs, reducing pressures on the NHS, and ensuring the local provider market was supported."

“Government should first make a down-payment on the green paper by injecting additional resources into the system to fund immediate funding pressures which are set to exceed £2 billion by 2020. This will enable the system to stay afloat until such time as the green paper reforms bring in new resources.”

“Social care needs to be put on an equal footing with the NHS and government needs to address immediate pressures as part of funding gap facing social care, which is set to exceed £2 billion by 2020.”

Cllr Martin Tett, the Local Government Association’s Transport spokesman, responds to guidance published today by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence, calling for councils to encourage people to be more active.

"With housing for elderly people currently accounting for just 6 per cent of our existing stock, and more older people and families renting privately than ever before, there needs to be a national focus on tackling a chronic shortage of homes suitable to support our ageing population and reforms that will maintain and improve housing standards."

It’s good to see long-term investment in the NHS, but government also needs to make the same commitment to adult social care which deserves to be given parity with the health service.