Care home prices ‘jump by almost a quarter in a year’, despite declining quality
Average care home prices in England have jumped by almost a quarter in a year despite declining quality, according to a new analysis.
A review of care home ratings found the proportion rated ‘good’ or ‘outstanding’ had fallen by 9% between 2015-16, while prices have risen by an average of 23%.
Researchers from TrustedCare.co.uk analysed Care Quality Commission (CQC) data, finding care home prices had increased from £557.86 to £636.32 per week on average.
The poorest quality of care is most likely to be found in the south east and north west of England.
Best and worst
Herefordshire remains the best county for care services overall, with 92% of providers meeting national standards, though this represents a fall of 5% on 2015.
Worcestershire and Northamptonshire followed, with 89% and 88% of providers adhering to standards.
At the lower end of the table, West Yorkshire replaces the Isle of Wight as the worst county for care services in 2016, with 34% of services failing to meet good standards.
Durham was found to be the most expensive area for care homes, with average prices there almost doubling in a year, from £491.70 per week to £907.
Share experience
TrustedCare.co.uk chief executive Mark Walford said: ‘The data shows once more that there is a complex mix of factors that affect the quality and cost of care, and that there isn’t a strong correlation between areas of affluence and local care quality as one might expect, despite a strong link to price of care.
‘Instead, factors such as local employment markets, local authority commissioning rates and the level of co-operation between local NHS and social care teams are sure to play into the mix.’
The CQC disputed the figures, but said over a quarter of services were rated as ‘requires improvement’ and a further 2% as ‘inadequate’.
Andrea Sutcliffe, CQC’s chief inspector of adult social care, said: ‘The first port of call for people looking for information about care should be the CQC, and the interactive map we launched in October makes it easier than ever before to find information about individual services.’
She also urged people to share their experiences with the CQC.
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