Charity Demands Government Review Care Home Funding in Green Paper

The Relatives and Residents Association has urged the Government to prioritise older people in care homes in its forthcoming green paper.

The charity, which supports older people in care as well as their families, says Government should acknowledge the particular plight of care home residents in light of plans to reform social care funding.

‘Plans to reform the current system do not properly take into account the difficulties and unfairness that face many older people moving into care homes,’ said Gillian Dalley, RRA chief executive.

‘Because of financial means testing, about a third of people in residential care currently have to pay the whole of their care homes fees themselves and that can mean anything between £400 and £1,000 a week – or more.’

She said people who had worked hard all their lives were finding that, ‘when they become too infirm to look after themselves, all their savings will have to be spent on care. What is the point of working hard, contributing to the public purse throughout your working life, only to find that the state is not there to help when you really need it?’