More adults receiving council-funded social care in Swindon are forking out their own money to top up their support, new figures reveal.

In an annual survey of adult social care users for 2018-19, one in three people in Swindon who responded to the survey said they or their family buy additional care privately or pay more to the council to top up the care they receive.

This 33.7 per cent result was up by 2.8 per cent compared to five years ago, when 30.9 per cent said they paid extra to boost their care support.

Swindon Borough Council was approached for comment but could not provide one before deadline.

Overall, 66 per cent of people in Swindon said they were either very or extremely satisfied with the care they received, which is slightly above the national average of 64.3 per cent.

A further 24.2 per cent were quite satisfied with their care, while 5.3 per cent were dissatisfied with the support they received.

Unlike the NHS, social care in England is means-tested - and those with savings of more than £23,500 have to pay their own way.

Across England, a record 37.2 per cent of social care users now say they top-up their care.

Almost half of them people aged 65 and over who receive help in the community, such as home visits. This is the highest rate since the survey began in 2010-11, and up by 0.5 per cent in just one year.

The figures only include people who are eligible for state-funded social care.

Ian Hudspeth from the Local Government Association said that rising costs and demand meant councils were having to make “incredibly difficult” decisions about people’s care.

He added: “While extra funding for social care next year is helpful, what we need is action and certainty to secure care and support for the long-term."

Age UK charity director Caroline Abrahams said: “Too many older people and families are already struggling without the care they need, or watching with absolute horror as their lifetime savings disappear to fund sky-high care bills.

“We know that older people and their families are living in fear that they will be unable to keep up with the payments.

“With a care system under siege, this is a problem that needs solving.”

A spokesman for the Department of Health and Social Care said: “We know the system is under pressure and we have given local authorities an extra £1.5 billion next year to meet rising demand and stabilise the social care system."

Swindon Borough Council was approached for comment but could not provide one before deadline.