GOVERNMENT underfunding of social care is having a “catastrophic” impact on unpaid carers, a report revealed today.

According to a survey by the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services (Adass), council overspending on adult social care budgets hit £774 million last year, the highest level in a decade.

The government has promised a £4 billion increase in funding by 2028-29, but Adass warned that it was unclear whether this included a fair pay deal for care workers.

The Local Government Association said councils were caught in an “impossible position.”

Dominic Carter of the Carers Trust charity said unpaid carers were “breaking down” under pressure and that a lack of access to support was “the main contributing factor.”

The report shows how government underfunding of prevention and social care spending is “having a catastrophic impact on millions of unpaid carers,” he added.

Unison general secretary Christina McAnea said the “sooner there’s a national care service, the better,” as it would drive up standards and “begin to replace the profit-driven system that’s failing far too many people, their families and hard-pressed staff.”

The Department of Health and Social Care said work had begun on creating such a service.