National Care Service - adult social care: equality evidence review

9. Race

The Equality Act 2010 defines the protected characteristic of race in terms of colour, nationality, and ethnic or national origins^[97]. This section brings together data and evidence on equalities in social care and race and ethnicity. Evidence is presented here in relation to the experiences of people who access social care, unpaid carers, and social care workers.

NRS analysis of population data suggests that Scotland is becoming more ethnically and religiously diverse^[98].

9.1 People who access social care

There is very limited national data on ethnic group for people who access social care. The majority of people receiving social care support are White; in 2020/21, 72% of people receiving social care support were White, a similar proportion to previous years, but ethnicity was recorded as not known or not provided for a further 26%^[99].

Research by the ALLIANCE and Self Directed Support Scotland (SDSS), which explored people's experience of Self-directed Support and social care in Scotland, highlighted barriers to support for Black and minority ethnic people^[100], including: access to information and advice; and cultural awareness and understanding. This was particularly the case for Black and minority ethnic women, and the report suggests that this could be associated with women having less fluency in English in some communities^[101].

Analysis of social care data in England found that a slightly smaller proportion of Black and other minority ethnic working age adults reported a need for care, in comparison to their White counterparts. It is not clear from the data whether this is associated with differences in prevalence of long term health conditions or differences in propensity to report a need for care. Furthermore, of those who do report a need for care, Black and other minority ethnic working age adults are less likely than their White counterparts to receive some help (10% and 15% respectively). In contrast, some minority ethnic groups aged over 65 are more likely to report needing help with one or more Activities of Daily Living or Instrumental Activities of Daily Living^[102] than their White counterparts, notably Black/Black British and Asian/Asian British. This report also found that some minority ethnic groups reported poorer experiences of social care, notably Asian or Asian British, and Black or Black British^[103].

9.2 Unpaid carers

There is very limited national data on ethnic group for unpaid carers. NRS analysis of population data suggests that Scotland is becoming more ethnically and religiously diverse^[104]. However the Scotland’s Carers (2015) report found that only 4% of people providing unpaid care were from mixed or minority ethnic groups, whilst 96% were from a “White Scottish/British/Irish” ethnic background^[105].

According to the 2011 Census data, the majority of 4-24 year olds are White Scottish (84%), 6% are White other British, and 10% are from other ethnic groups. The proportion that are young carers and young adult carers is similar; 3% White Scottish and 2% others. Although the numbers are small, there is a variation according to individual ethnic groups. The highest prevalence is 5% of White Gypsy/Traveller young people, followed by 4% of Pakistani, Scottish Pakistani or British Pakistani young people^[106]. Research carried out in England by Barnardo’s suggests that there are particular barriers to accessing support for Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME)^[107] young carers, which could result in this group being isolated and unsupported by services. This report found that BAME young carers were less likely to receive financial and practical support, and suggests that this was due to a lack of culturally appropriate information and community engagement^[108].

Analysis of social care data in England found that minority ethnic carers, particularly those from Asian ethnic backgrounds, provided more hours of care than their White counterparts. Furthermore, whilst this analysis found similarities in some aspects of carers’ experiences, it also highlights variation. For example, Asian/Asian British carers, and Black/ Black British carers, were more likely to report difficulties with information, advice, support and services than their White counterparts. These groups were also more likely to report that caring had caused them financial difficulties in the last 12 months^[109].

9.3 Social care workers

There is limited data on ethnic group for social care workers. Whilst NRS analysis of population data suggests that Scotland is becoming more ethnically and religiously diverse^[110], only 3% of the adult social care workforce reported as belonging to an minority ethnic group in 2020. There was some variation by service, with the private sector having slightly higher minority ethnic representation. However, ethnicity information was not known for 27% of the adult social care workforce, and the data also does not include Personal Assistants^{[111] [112]}.