Are care home fees all-inclusive?

What do care home fees include? If you’re budgeting for care home fees, you don’t want to be surprised by extra costs added on top of the base fee. Care homes do understand this and do their best to keep charges transparent.

Care home fees do tend to increase year on year. Citizen’s Advice estimates the average price increase is around £900 a year. The home will notify you of these changes, but how much notice they give varies greatly between homes. 

In Scotland, personal care is free in care homes and for home care. Personal care is help with washing, dressing, going to the toilet, shaving and applying deodorant, perfume or creams.

Whether or not care home fees are all inclusive depends on the care home. Below are costs that homes regularly include in the weekly fee and some common extras, but some care homes do offer an all-inclusive service, often for a higher but fixed weekly fee.

What do care home fees include?

Staff who deliver their care

Staff in care homes provide personal care, administer and track medication, keep residents safe, provide companionship, cook their meals, wash their laundry, clean the home and plan and provide activities.

Homes that offer more specialist care need to employ and pay staff with specialist skills, such as registered nurses or staff highly skilled in supporting people who live with dementia.

While many care homes do have some volunteers for support, employed staff need to receive at least minimum wage and usually contributions towards their pensions.

Residents who require more specialist care may face a higher fee than those who need less care. The resident and home will pre-agree all this in their contract.

Accommodation

Care home residents live in the home full-time, so their fees contribute to the usual costs of running a household. This includes upkeep of the building, heating, electricity and other utility bills.

Food

Residents are provided with three meals a day plus snacks and extras like a tea trolley, baking activities and cheese and wine events.

They may need to purchase food themselves on outings, group takeaways or if the home has an on-site café, but often it’s of no extra charge. Check with your chosen care home what their policy is in these circumstances.

Laundry

Fees usually include laundry, but there may be additional charges for items that staff need to send to the dry cleaner.

Transport provided by the home

Many care homes provide minibuses to transport residents on outings or to appointments. Some luxury care homes even provide a chauffeur service.

What do care home fees usually NOT include?

Admin charges

You may need to pay a deposit or admin fee. Care homes can also charge to store the possessions of a resident who has died or clear their room in some circumstances.

Hair and beauty treatments

This varies from care home to care home. Supporting men (and women) to shave is part of personal care, but a resident will usually need to pay for their haircut or beauty treatment if they go to an external hairdresser, barber or salon. However, many care homes have hairdressers visit the home or even have an in-home hair and beauty salon. In this case it may be included in their fee, check with the care home.

Drinks from on-site pubs

Many care homes have their own pubs for residents to socialise in. A 2020 survey found that 44% of UK care homes have an on-site pub or drinking facility that serves alcohol.

These are popular with residents to relax in and host family and friends. Drinks and snacks here could cost extra, though some homes include the cost of these as part of the service.

Toiletries

Care homes will have some sanitary items, but they may ask next of kin to supply things like incontinence pads, and any toiletries such as shampoo and conditioner, shaving items and face creams that the resident would like. Again check with the care home if they charge extra for toiletries or whether it would be cheaper to buy your own.

Outings

Outings can accrue extra costs, such as tickets and meals out. Homes usually organise this in advance.

You may also have to pay extra for a carer to accompany a resident to hospital appointments or other outings that require one-to-one support outside of the home.

Shopping

Staff can support residents to buy new clothes, shoes or slippers in shops and online, but they’ll need to pay for these things themselves.

Newspapers

If a resident would like to have a newspaper each day, the care home can arrange a subscription but will charge the bill to the resident.

Visiting medics

Often care homes will have a visiting chiropodist, optician, audiologist or even dentist. It is the care home’s responsibility to organise these and any trips to medical appointments. Those that cost money, such as dental treatment or a chiropodist, will usually be added to the bill.

Phones

Residents will need to pay for their own mobile phone and contract, if they want one. Most care home bedrooms have phone points where residents can plug in a landline phone if they’d prefer. Phone access may cost extra.

Cigarettes

Residents who smoke or vape will need to fund this themselves. Staff may support them to buy tobacco, papers, filters, cigarettes, cigars, pipes, snuff, liquids and cartridges, or a friend or family member could supply these for them.

WiFi

WiFi is often included in the bill but occasionally isn’t, check with the care home.

How can I be sure exactly how much my care home fee will be?

How much a care home resident pays depends on the care they need and the funding they are eligible for.

Your chosen care home will be happy to talk through costs and the contract with you.

Care homes regularly review each resident’s needs. If somebody’s care needs have increased, they may be charged more for their care but they may also now qualify for more funding to support them financially.

To find out more about how care needs are assessed, read our article on care needs assessments.