More than 11,000 Scots awaiting social care assessment or care package

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton has today raised the alarm over the crisis in social care as new figures revealed that there are 11,424 people currently waiting on social care assessments and care at home packages, which is almost 2,000 more people waiting than this time last year.

Figures from Public Health Scotland published today reveal:

• The number of people estimated to be waiting on a social care assessment for a package of care to enable them to live independently at home or in the community 8,050 on 5th January 2026, which is an increase of just under 30% on this time last year.

• The estimated number of people assessed and waiting for a care at home package was 3,374 on 5th January 2026.

Alex Cole-Hamilton said:

“At the start of the new year, these figures plainly show just how badly social care has been allowed to drift under the SNP.

“I recently raised the case of Margaret McGill with the First Minister who has been stuck in hospital for 14 months. There are thousands more like her, waiting for care packages and assessments.

“You can’t fix the NHS if social care is broken. Waits for these packages increases delayed discharge, which pushes up A&E waits and leaves ambulances queued outside hospitals.

“That’s why Scottish Liberal Democrats have driven action to repair social care — securing millions more for the sector, stopping another wasteful SNP centralisation, and creating a new college route for care workers. It's also why we want a new UK-wide minimum wage for care workers that is £2 higher.”