SOCIAL care providers are facing a “catastrophic” financial precipice which could collapse thousands of private and not-for-profit groups, a health sector think tank has warned.

The Nuffield Trust said the combination of an increase in employers’ National Insurance contributions and the national minimum wage, announced in the July Budget, could cost the sector an additional £2.8 billion.

The Trust warned that “swathes of the social care market” could collapse as a result.