Health and social care systems cannot deliver long-term outcomes through short-term funding arrangements.
Across the sector, services are increasingly being asked to respond to rising demand, growing complexity, workforce pressures, and worsening health inequalities while operating within funding models that are often short-term, target-driven, and financially insecure. This approach is placing pressure on organisations and staff, as well as undermining outcomes for people who rely on support.
As part of our campaign, “Towards a Fairer Future”, which is calling on the new Welsh Government to prioritise the needs of people and communities across Wales, Adferiad is seeking a commitment to long-term, sustainable funding approach for health, social care, and the third sector.
Funding is frequently tied to short delivery cycles, narrow targets, or annual allocations that make long-term planning almost impossible. Organisations are expected to demonstrate immediate outcomes in services where recovery, wellbeing, and stability do not happen overnight. Real recovery is rarely linear. It takes time, consistency, trust, and relationships – none of which fit neatly into short-term performance frameworks.
Target-driven approaches can unintentionally create systems focused on outputs rather than people. They encourage crisis management over prevention, and short interventions over long-term support. At the same time, funding uncertainty makes it harder to retain skilled staff, invest in workforce development, or build stable services within communities.
The workforce across health, social care and the third sector continues to carry enormous pressure. Recruitment and retention challenges are affecting services across Wales, while many frontline staff remain underpaid despite the complexity and value of their work. If the new administration is serious about strengthening community support and prevention, there should be further investment in equal wages across sectors, workforce development, wellbeing support, and staffing capacity across all parts of the system.
This also requires a different relationship with the third sector. Third sector organisations are often deeply embedded within communities, trusted by the people they support, and able to respond flexibly to complex and emerging need. However, despite playing a central role in prevention, recovery, and early intervention, the sector is regularly treated as an add-on rather than an equal partner in decision-making.
We want to see direct, sustainable investment in health, social care, and the third sector that reflects how interconnected these systems already are in practice. Decisions about health and social care should not happen without the participation and consideration of the third sector.
Alongside this, Wales should move towards funding models that recognise long-term impact rather than short-term targets alone. Support should not simply be measured by how quickly someone moves through a service, but by whether support helps improve stability, wellbeing, connection, and recovery over time.
Lastly, we are calling for greater investment in anti-stigma programmes that challenge harmful perceptions around mental health and substance use. Stigma continues to restrict support, employment, housing, and recovery in general. Sustainable change requires investment in services, as well as in public understanding and social attitudes.
The new Welsh Government has the ability to move beyond reactive, short-term approaches and build a system rooted in prevention, partnership, stability, and long-term recovery.
Individuals cannot rebuild their lives through services that are constantly being asked to survive.
