Sarah Jenkins, Economy & Labour Reporter
In the southern Indian state of Kerala, a quiet revolution is taking place. It is a revolution in how a society cares for its oldest members. While Britain’s social care system lurches from crisis to crisis, with the elderly left languishing in underfunded homes and exhausted carers breaking under the strain, Kerala has introduced a comprehensive elderly care policy that offers a glimpse of what might be possible.
The Kerala government’s ‘Elderly Care Policy 2024’ is a blueprint for dignity in old age. It guarantees free geriatric healthcare, a pension equivalent to 40 per cent of the minimum wage, and state-funded day centres for the over-60s. The policy also enshrines the right of elderly people to live in their own homes, with home care workers paid a decent wage and given proper training.
For a British observer, the contrast is stark. Here in the UK, social care is a postcode lottery. The system is fragmented, underfunded, and relies heavily on unpaid family carers, most of them women. The average cost of a care home now exceeds £1,000 a week. Tens of thousands of elderly people are forced to sell their homes to pay for care. And the workers who provide that care are among the lowest paid in the country, many on zero-hours contracts.
“We looked at the Kerala model and thought, why can’t we do that here?” says Maureen Thompson, a carer from Newcastle who has spent 20 years in the sector. “My mother is 87. She needs help with washing and dressing. I have to juggle my shifts to look after her. It’s exhausting. And I’m one of the lucky ones because I know the system.”
The Kerala policy is built on three pillars: universal access, fair pay, and community engagement. It treats care as a public good, not a commodity to be bought and sold. The state government has invested heavily in training care workers, raising their status and pay. As a result, the sector is seen as a career, not a dead-end job.
Could such a model work in Britain? The obstacles are formidable. The UK’s care system is a patchwork of private and public provision, with local authorities commissioning care from a fragmented market of providers. The government has promised a cap on care costs, but it has been delayed repeatedly. The sector is short of an estimated 150,000 workers.
But the Kerala example shows that political will can make a difference. The policy was developed after extensive consultation with older people, their families, and care workers. It is funded through progressive taxation and a social insurance scheme. It is not perfect, but it is a start.
“We have a lot to learn from Kerala,” says David Rees, a social policy researcher at the London School of Economics. “They have shown that it is possible to create a system that puts the needs of the elderly and the carers at the centre. The question is whether we have the courage to do the same.”
For now, the British social care debate remains stuck. The government’s most recent plan, published in 2021, promised a cap on care costs of 86,000 pounds, but it has not been implemented. Meanwhile, the number of over-85s is set to double by 2040. The pressure on families, carers, and the NHS will only grow.
In Kerala, they have shown that a different path is possible. It is a path that values care, respects carers, and treats the elderly with the dignity they deserve. As Britain’s social care crisis deepens, perhaps it is time to look east for inspiration.
