Care Home News
Social care ombudsman sees 'relentless rise' in upheld complaints reflecting 'failing social care system'
29 Sep 2021
The Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman’s latest annual review of complaints shows a 'relentless rise over the last decade in the proportion of cases in which care users and their families have been let down by local services'. The.....
How design can help care homes to embrace intergenerational living
28 Sep 2021
After the last 18 months the benefits offered by intergenerational living need little explanation. The concept of different generations living together, sharing resources, skills and experience can help to build a robust community......
Care boss urges government to 'get a grip' on social care whilst prioritising petrol and food crisis
28 Sep 2021
The Independent Care Group (ICG) says the government is willing to do anything to support some issues including “granting visas to overseas workers” to “tackle" the food and petrol crisis but continues to be “deaf” when dealing with.....
North Wales care home group to establish first Admiral nurse service
28 Sep 2021
Care home group Meddyg Care is to become the first care home group to establish an Admiral nurse service in north Wales. At present, there are less than 300 Admiral nurses within England and Wales, with none.....
Care leaders call for care workers to be prioritised in petrol crisis
27 Sep 2021
Care sector leaders are calling on the government to urgently prioritise care workers and other essential workers on garage forecourts, as petrol supplies run dry following panic buying, in the wake of concerns about a shortage of.....
Scottish government urges public to have their say on care home visits and legal rights
27 Sep 2021
People across Scotland are being urged to have their say on new legislation, giving ideas of how care home residents can have the right to meaningful contact in the future with friends and family, after visits were banned or restricted.....
Care homes at risk from energy bills doubling this winter
24 Sep 2021
A care home with 50 residents on average spends around £50,000 a year on gas and electricity but energy price rises this winter could see them pay double, an energy broker has revealed. The steep rise is.....
Relative's letter prompts Michael Gove to visit 'passionately-run' care home
22 Sep 2021
Michael Gove, the new Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities has praised care workers at a care home for “tirelessly” working throughout the pandemic, after a resident's relative wrote to him about her husband’s.....
New care home group pledges to pay real Living Wage and give staff free meals
21 Sep 2021
A new care home group, which is opening its first new homes in Fleet and Chelmsford, has pledged to pay its staff the Real Living Wage and give them free meals and a complimentary uniform laundry service. Principle.....
Care home drama Help praised by care workers charity as 'moving and powerful'
17 Sep 2021
Channel 4’s care home drama Help starring Jodie Comer and Stephen Graham has been commended by the Care Workers’ Charity for “accurately portraying the feelings of despair and abandonment” by care workers during the pandemic. The.....
New care minister Gillian Keegan replaces Helen Whately to take on 'significant challenges'
17 Sep 2021
Prime Minister Boris Johnson has appointed former Skills minister Gillian Keegan as the country’s new care minister as part of his cabinet reshuffle to replace Helen Whately who will take up a Treasury post. Former.....
100-year-old pleads to see all her children as quarter of a million sign petition against care home visit ban
16 Sep 2021
Families have marched to 10 Downing Street to deliver a 267,000-strong petition demanding care home residents, like 100-year-old Frances, be allowed to see their families when they want and penalise care homes that fail to allow it......
Care home workers who are pregnant or have allergies are exempt from mandatory vaccination
16 Sep 2021
Care home staff who are pregnant, have severe allergies or had an adverse reaction to the first dose, will be exempt from mandatory vaccination. In July, the government revealed that from 11 November, everyone.....
Care homes feel 'slap in the face' as music festivals get government-backed Covid insurance
16 Sep 2021
Care homes are feeling a ‘slap in the face' from the government’s decision to provide an insurance indemnity for music festivals, while care homes fear closure as they struggle to get insurance protection against Covid-19 claims......
Care provider fined £363,000 for failing to prevent care home resident's rape
16 Sep 2021
A care provider has been fined £363,000 for failing to prevent a male resident raping a woman and committing 79 incidents of “verbal or physical sexualised behaviour” against five residents and eight staff members in a care home......
Covid booster jab available for care workers, over 50s and people with health conditions
15 Sep 2021
A third dose of a Covid vaccine will be given to care workers, NHS staff, over-50s, and people with health conditions across the UK from 20 September. The booster jabs are part of an autumn and winter plan.....
Care home workers seek legal action against government's 'unlawful' mandatory Covid jab
14 Sep 2021
Care home staff have launched legal action against the government and Health Secretary Sajid Javid for introducing a mandatory Covid jab requirement for care workers, which they call an “unlawful and unnecessary restriction”. Under.....
Care homes call for change in foreign worker rules to fix staffing woes
14 Sep 2021
With care homes struggling to find enough staff to fill care vacancies across the country, the government has been urged to change immigration restrictions on low paid foreign workers to address the staffing crisis in the care sector......
100,000 care workers 'trapped' on Universal Credit due to low pay
13 Sep 2021
At least 100,000 care workers in the UK are 'trapped' on Universal Credit due to low pay, but Work and Pensions Secretary Therese Coffey has said she is "happy" with the incoming £20 per week cut to Universal Credit. One.....
Care home buddy programme sees rise in 'retention' of new care workers
10 Sep 2021
Care UK has launched a buddy programme for new starters during Professional Care Workers’ Week, where it is already making a positive impact for buddies as a potential for career development and a rise in “retention” of new care workers. The.....
Cambridgeshire care village commits to national living wage and staff perks to all care workers
10 Sep 2021
Askham Village Community, near Doddington, are taking steps to "recognise and reward" all frontline care workers by increasing their wages to the national living wage and help shake off negative perceptions of working in the care.....
Government wants to make Covid jab mandatory for home care workers and NHS staff
09 Sep 2021
The government has begun a public consultation into whether Covid and flu vaccinations should be made compulsory for home care workers and the NHS workforce, but home care leaders warn it could lead to the sector losing around a fifth.....
Social Care Day of Remembrance and Reflection launched
09 Sep 2021
A Social Care Day of Remembrance and Reflection is to be held to honour the work of the adult social care workforce during the pandemic, and those who lost their lives. A total of 21 organisations including.....
Boris Johnson's care cap fails to cover care home meals or accommodation
08 Sep 2021
Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s claim that no one will have to pay more than £86,000 towards the cost of their care in their lifetime has been roundly attacked, because people must still pay for their daily living costs at a care home.....
Care home hit by recruitment crisis forced to use staff with Covid
08 Sep 2021
A care home in Wales was forced to use staff who have Covid-19 because it had nobody else to look after its 12 residents. The Caledonia care home in Holyhead has 11 residents with coronavirus, with its owner.....
PM caps care costs at £86,000 using National Insurance hike to fund social care
07 Sep 2021
Care leaders are concerned the Prime Minister’s announcement of a 1.25 per cent increase in National Insurance will do nothing to address the “immediate crisis” in social care and warn the sector will need to be a priority rather.....
Care home resident travels 300 miles to see his granddaughter marry
07 Sep 2021
A Dorset care home resident took a two-and-a-half-hour taxi ride accompanied by a care home worker to see his granddaughter get married. Frank Campbell, 93, made the journey from Fernhill in Ferndown to.....
Maria Mallaband care group invests £80 million towards new development programme
06 Sep 2021
Maria Mallaband Care Group (MMCG) has confirmed it is committing more than £80m to develop nine new care homes, as part of an ongoing build programme over the next three to four years. Last year, the group.....
Care leaders cautiously optimistic of suggested government tax increase to reform social care
03 Sep 2021
Care leaders and ministers have given a cautious welcome to reports the government is considering an increase in National Insurance to pay for social care reform. The Telegraph and The Times said the government.....
By 2030, over half a million people with dementia will not have access to a care home bed, report warns
02 Sep 2021
With only 450,000 care home places available by 2030 and over 50,000 people with dementia needing to find a place, a new report warns this shortfall will also put pressure on the 700,000 family carers, already at breaking point, bearing.....