A&E departments are buckling under the pressure of a social care system that is reaching its “tipping point”, a health watchdog has warned.

The warning sounded while Southend and Basildon hospitals remain under extreme pressure after declaring black alert.

The highest level of alert, it usually means bed capacity is reached and patients arriving at A&E will be taken to another hospital.

Some people across the country are receiving “very poor care”, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) said as it released its annual assessment of care in England, which also set out a woeful picture of the social care sector, which councils are responsible for.

Lesley Salter, executive councillor for health and adult social care in Southend, said the problem is widespread.

She explained: ““Many people will not realise that the great majority of the council’s budget is rightly focused on helping and protecting local people that need our help and services.

“There is no doubting that we are faced with major challenges such as central funding cuts and an ageing population and the pressure that puts on local services.”

The authority spends more than a third of its budget on social care, some £68 million per year.

Councillor Salter added: “The council has therefore had to take a real considered look at how we can redesign and improve our services, ensuring they are modern and meet the needs of those that require our help, and also deliver the savings we must make.”

The watchdog found that despite a 33 per cent rise in the number of people aged 85 and over in the last decade, the proportion of people receiving local authority-funded care had reduced.

It said the number of beds in nursing homes was not increasing in line with demand and care home providers were pulling out of local authority contracts.

The CQC called for “urgent action” to tackle the issues, including an injection of funding into the care system.