English care homes facing financial ruin, say councils

CCN’s ground-breaking research, with LaingBuisson, County Care Markets: Market Sustainability and the Care Act showed that funding reductions in social care budgets have inevitably led to significant downward pressure on the fees paid by our member councils for residential and nursing care. This has led to unsustainable pressures in local care markets, with many providers teetering on the edge of financial meltdown and collapse.

There is also growing evidence of the development of a ‘two-tier’ polarised market, with providers seeking an ever increasing proportion of their business from higher fee paying ‘self-funders’, locking out local authorities from accessing segments of their local market.

This research contributed to the implementation of the Care Act part 2 being delayed until 2020.

Despite this, local care markets will remain unsustainable without significant investment from Government. On 17th August Councillor Paul Carter, wrote to the Secretary of State for Health outlining these concerns on behalf of CCN member councils.

The articles can be accessed here: Letter to Rt Hon Jeremy Hunt MP (198KB – PDF)

Telegraph (front page): Middle class care home residents charged ‘unfair’ 50pc subsidy to prop up ‘teetering’ system

Guardian: English care homes facing financial ruin, say councils