Care Home News
COVID-19: Care home resident reunites with husband after five months away in New Zealand
30 Jul 2020
A husband and wife from Worcester are finally reunited after a three week trip forced them to be apart for five months due to COVID-19. Gay Smallman, a resident at Fernhill House Care Home and her husband Robert last.....
HC-One appoints nursery boss as its new chief executive
29 Jul 2020
One of the UK’s largest care home providers, HC-One, has appointed Bright Horizons boss as its new chief executive. James Tugendhat is leaving his post as international managing director of the childcare.....
Government's failure to provide adequate PPE and testing to care workers was a 'sad, low moment' for UK
29 Jul 2020
A cross-party group of MPs has criticised the government for its ‘slow, inconsistent, and at times negligent approach’ to social care during the COVID-19 pandemic, saying ‘there are many lessons the government must learn’. The.....
Care home worker facing deportation feels 'broken' and says he fears for life in podcast
29 Jul 2020
A care worker has spoken out about how he fears for his life after battling to protect care home residents from COVID-19, only to be told he faces deportation to Nigeria and must leave the country by 31 August. Anugwom Goodluck.....
Care home residents gain 'confidence' and 'self esteem' with portable interactive tables
29 Jul 2020
Residents at a care home in Birmingham have been managing to keep in touch with their families during lockdown through an interactive table, with the care home finding the activities on it also boosted their “self-esteem” and encouraged.....
Care homes urged to use Infection Control Grant to buy antibody tests
27 Jul 2020
A boss of a care home group in the south east of England is urging other care homes to use the Infection Control Grant to buy antibody tests saying “it helps to plan your care and keep residents and staff safe”. A.....
Social care bosses call for 'down-sizing' of care homes and more home care
24 Jul 2020
More home care and a shift away from long-term support in care homes is recommended by the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services in England (ADASS). A report by ADASS calls for a down-sizing.....
Coronavirus: 'Unimaginable heartache' brings huge rise in mental illness among care home staff
24 Jul 2020
Care homes have seen a "massive" rise in mental illness amongst staff and "unimaginable heartache" with two thirds of staff reporting mental health issues since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, a managers' poll reveals. An.....
Music for Dementia celebrates 30,000 listeners in first month
22 Jul 2020
Music for Dementia (m4d) Radio is celebrating its first set of audience listening figures of 30,000 since its launch last month. The internet radio station which was developed specifically for people with.....
Doncaster's new care home will promote independence and self-worth
22 Jul 2020
Runwood Homes Senior Living is opening a brand new 81 bedroomed care home in Bessacarr and says it will promote "independence, achievement and self-worth". The care home in partnership with Doncaster Council,.....
Government lifts ban on visitors to care homes in England
22 Jul 2020
The Department of Health has lifted the ban on visitors to care homes in England, with each resident allowed ‘one constant visitor’ as long as they book in advance and wear a mask and extra PPE if required. The.....
Chris Whitty refutes Prime Minister's claim care homes were to blame for coronavirus deaths
22 Jul 2020
England’s Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty has refuted Boris Johnson’s comments blaming care homes for coronavirus deaths saying his “enthusiasm for blaming people for anything is zero”. Mr Johnson angered.....
Lockdown: 'Lonely' husband unable to visit wife moves into care home to be with her
21 Jul 2020
A couple who have been married for 60 years have been reunited after husband Mike Nightingale moved into his wife Sue’s care home, as lockdown restrictions meant he was unable to see her leaving him “incredibly upset and lonely”. Sue.....
Centenarian care home resident had always been 'determined' to make it to 100
20 Jul 2020
Kathleen King recently celebrated her 100th birthday at a care home in Gerrards Cross, with her son saying she has always been “determined to make it to a hundred years old”. Staff members at Austenwood Nursing.....
Residents at 'inadequate' care home learnt about COVID-19 on TV and staff failed to wear masks
20 Jul 2020
A care home in Norfolk has been rated ‘inadequate’ by the Care Quality Commission after inspectors found residents learnt about COVID-19 by watching the TV and staff failed to wear PPE and carry out additional cleaning. Heathers.....
Son of 93 year-old says care homes give 'happiness to millions' so we must #CelebrateCareHomes
17 Jul 2020
The son of a 93-year-old care home resident has said society must celebrate care homes and shout about Britain’s unsung care heroes who are keeping COVID-19 away while giving “happiness to millions”......
Lockdown life is a cabaret for care home's LGBTQ+ staff in drag
17 Jul 2020
Drag queen ‘Miss Bonnie’, the alter ego of a care home’s activities coordinator Paul Wilson, has been strutting about in a figure hugging, black jumpsuit to belt out some Cher songs for residents in lockdown......
Government to speed up hospital discharges for those with learning disabilities and autism
16 Jul 2020
The government is giving £62m to councils to speed up the discharge of people with learning disabilities and those with autism from mental health hospitals into the community, due to revelations last year that people with these disabilities.....
Lockdown letters: Schoolgirl Sofia forges 'Bella' bond with care home penpal
16 Jul 2020
Ten-year-old schoolgirl Sofia’s love of penpal writing has led her to forge a close bond with a woman who has been under lockdown at Bryn Bella care home in Wrexham. Sofia Bird from St Mary's Aided School.....
Care home's veterans in lockdown raise COVID-19 funds with virtual 874 mile cycle
15 Jul 2020
War veterans at Royal Star & Garter - High Wycombe care home have finished a virtual cycle from Lands’ End to John O’Groats after peddling 874 miles in 14 days to raise funds for 'significant' COVID-19 costs......
COVID-19 outbreak risk in care homes triples with every extra 20 beds, study finds
15 Jul 2020
The likelihood of a coronavirus outbreak in a care home triples with every additional 20 beds it has, a study of 189 infected care homes by NHS Lothian and Edinburgh University has found. Of the care homes.....
Care workers' exclusion from new Health and Care Visa called 'embarrassing shambles'
14 Jul 2020
Home secretary Priti Patel has confirmed care workers won't be eligible for a new Health and Care visa under the government's new post-Brexit immigration system which comes into force in January, sparking criticism that the decision.....
Care Workers Charity can now help even more care workers as it hits £2m fundraising target
13 Jul 2020
In just a few months, the Care Workers Charity has managed to reach its £2m fundraising target so it is now able to give even more grants to care workers in need due to COVID-19. Care workers have been on.....
Coronavirus: Family joins legal action against Health Secretary over care home crisis
13 Jul 2020
Fay Harris, whose father died of COVID-19 in a care home, has joined a legal battle for justice launched against Health Secretary Matt Hancock. Bereaved daughter Fay Harris is applying to join a legal.....
Care home 'hits back' at Boris by recreating iconic album covers
13 Jul 2020
Care home residents have recreated hit album covers by dressing up as David Bowie, Adele and Michael Jackson in defiance of Boris Johnson's 'wholly inappropriate' comments about care homes. Residents.....
Health minister announces families can visit residents inside care homes in England 'very soon'
10 Jul 2020
Families will be allowed to visit residents inside care homes in England and hints it could be as soon as ‘next week’ if the home is 'COVID-secure', according to Matt Hancock. The health and social care secretary.....
Care home director says we need to 'tap into stereotypically masculine worlds' to get more men working in care
09 Jul 2020
Michael Chawatama, regional director for Sunrise Senior Living, is calling for more men to take up a career in care and says “we need to challenge conventions by kickstarting conversations about working in care”. Mr.....
PM repeatedly refuses to apologise after blaming care homes for COVID-19 deaths
09 Jul 2020
The Prime Minister's refusal to apologise for comments he made blaming care homes for not following 'procedures' during the pandemic, has rubbed "salt into the wounds" of every care worker, according to Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer......
North Wales care home built for Polish war veterans to close next year
08 Jul 2020
The Penrhos Polish Home near Pwllheli in Gwynedd, built for Polish war veterans is to close in March 2021, with Care Forum Wales calling it an "absolute tragedy". The closure which will affect around 30 residents.....
Coronavirus: Care homes across UK see death rate continue to fall
07 Jul 2020
For the tenth week in a row, England has seen a drop in care home coronavirus deaths, with the Local Government Association calling "every life lost to this disease a tragedy". England’s care homes have reported.....