Ending Extraction in the UK Care System: What Local Authorities Can Do

Local Authorities spend 70% of annual budgets on care services. Yet not all that investment is channelled into high quality jobs or comprehensive care nor kept in our local economies. Our new analysis (Ending Care Extraction in the UK ) has found that private companies operating care services in just three regions of England have taken more than £250m in profits in three years and over of third of those companies are owned by private equity companies or companies based in tax havens (or both).

The publication reveals the scale of this challenge and outlines how public money is being siphoned out of the care system rather than reinvested to improve services, and how care workers and our communities are affected. But it also highlights that a better way is possible. Local authorities can play a crucial role in driving care systems change to prioritise people and places rather than private profit through reforming commissioning practices.

What to Expect?

This practical session will:

• Present key insights from the publication on care sector profit extraction and its impacts
• Explore commissioning strategies that reinvest in care quality, workforce wellbeing, and local prosperity
• Showcase concrete examples of local authorities and service providers pioneering new approaches
• Create space for discussion among officers committed to transforming care in their areas

Who should Attend?

This event is for Local Authority colleagues working in:

• Leadership and policy roles
• Procurement and/or social care commissioning
• Public health
• Economic development

About the Programme

This webinar (and publication) forms part of the Reclaiming Our Regional Economies (RORE) programme, a five-year initiative led by the Centre for Local Economic Strategies, Centre for Thriving Places, Co-operatives UK, and the New Economics Foundation. The programme supports practical economic reform in UK regions helping to build economies that deliver good lives now and for generations to come.

Join the Conversation

Be part of a hopeful and solutions-focused discussion as we look ahead to what local authorities can put in place in 2026 to end extractive models of care. Sign up below, spaces are limited to 60 participants to support meaningful engagement.

Bookings

Tickets are free of charge.

This webinar will be conducted entirely online – joining instructions will be sent in advance of the session.