Actress Ruthie Henshall says care home visits are still a 'postcode lottery'

West End star Ruthie Henshall is today delivering a petition containing 250,000 signatures to Downing Street calling for new laws for relatives to be put in the same category as care workers.

Ms Henshall is a member of the Rights for Residents group and says it is still a “postcode lottery” if families can see their loved ones in care homes and relatives of care home residents should have essential caregiver status by law, which would allow them to visit even if there was another lockdown.

This is despite new rules from the government which came into force today stating residents can leave their home to go for a walk or to visit a loved one’s garden and will no longer have to isolate for two weeks on their return.

Appearing on ITV’s Good Morning Britain, Ms Henshall said: “As an essential carer, I go straight into her room, I’ve had the test, there are enough things to put in place now.

“I’m going straight into my mother’s room, I don’t see anybody else, don’t interact with anybody else.

“Whereas a paid carer is going into everybody’s room, they are going home to their husband, their children are coming home from school, from work.

“And she needs touch. She can’t speak, she can’t walk. She has to be fed; her food has to be mashed up. What does she have left but touch, love?

“And we all know having been starved of human affection, human touch, for the past year, we know how important that is.”

“We need to stop this postcode lottery that is going on with the care homes. People aren’t following the guidance so it needs to be law.”

Ms Henshall also described her mother before lockdown and how she has deteriorated since. “She was walking and talking, I had a phone conversation with her the day my father died, she was very aware.

“Four months later which we understood we had to keep them safe. She was in her room 24/7 on her own with an occasional visit from a carer. She has stopped talking, she can’t walk any more, her food has to be mushed up and her drinks have to be thickened. Now that happened in four months. You would expect some kind of deterioration but not like that.

“When I went to see her again, the care home manager said, ‘Oh my goodness the light is back on in her eyes.’”

'When you haven’t got Covid included in your insurance, one claim will be the end of your business'

However, Nadra Ahmed, chair of the National Care Association said there is still a concern that care home residents will be at risk if a new variant emerges and any guidance “rests on the shoulders of provider” to ensure “safety mechanisms [will] need to be in place” before managers can facilitate any visits without affecting their insurance.

Ms Ahmed told GMB: “These cautious steps are key to us moving forward. I absolutely agree the well-being of our residents is at the centre of everything that we do.

“There has been this deadly infection and our staff have had to cope with that for over a year now and up until December, they did this without the vaccine available. We are trying our best to enable this to happen.

“The risk is great because when you haven’t got Covid included in your insurance, one claim will be the end of your business because we wouldn’t be able to fight it.”

Under the new rule changes by the government which came into force today, care home residents in England can now go on low-risk trips without having to self-isolate for 14 days when they return.

Residents on visits out must be accompanied by either a member of staff or one of their two nominated visitors and follow social distancing throughout.

The government stipulates that visits out of the care home should take place only outdoors, apart from using toilets, with no visits to indoor spaces (public or private) and avoiding the use of public transport where possible.

It has also put an exemption in place for care home residents wanting to vote in person for the upcoming local elections as long as they follow national coronavirus restrictions and measures in place at polling stations.

It is understood a resident would be able to eat outside at a restaurant or cafe with their care worker or nominated visitor if they agree this with the care home in advance.