Manchester to increase care pay to Living Wage level

Manchester City Council has announced plans to increase the pay of the city’s home care assistants by £1 an hour, to better reflect and match Manchester’s Living Wage.

Driven by a £1.5 million cash boost from the council to commissioned organisations who supply care staff, the move is part of longer-term plans between the council and its NHS partners to recognise the invaluable role that the city’s home care staff provide, and to keep and attract more people to the role.

Manchester pays those home care businesses an average of £13.50 per hour for help in people’s homes. Now, it will go up to £15.20 per hour with the clear expectation that the rise will benefit care staff from 1 April.

Bev Craig, executive member for Adult Services, Health and Wellbeing, said: “This money is a way of recognising the hard work of those workers who give the sort of daily care that’s not only practical, but is a lifeline in providing the dignity that we all need. We all know that some things like dignity and wellbeing can’t have a price put on them. But, in reality, when you consider how this sector keeps people living longer and better at home, you can see not only the moral, but economic reasons too. Quite simply, this is the right thing to do and by investing in our people and services we will also help with tackling shameful in-work poverty in Manchester.”