News
Government needs social care funding solution
The Government has released a statement saying that it will allow local authorities to increase council tax bills by three per cent for the next two years in order to fund community social care. This represents a front loading of the two per cent social care precept option for the years up to 2019/20, which was declared by George Osborne in 2015. Recent and impending National Living
Wage increases and staff shortages continue to put pressure on care home providers. These issues were explored in Christie & Co’s report ‘Adult Social Care 2016: Funding, staffing and the bottom line’, which highlighted the urgent need for action. Max Weidl, director of Christie & Co’s care
consultancy team, comments, “Christie & Co estimates that the increase in the National Living Wage alone is set to increase staff costs in elderly care by a minimum of 2.5 to three
per cent and one to 1.5 per cent in specialist care. Furthermore, we expect costs for agency staff to continue to rise in 2017, while non-staff cost inflation is expected to be at 2.7 per cent. “If the three per cent increase in council tax
was raised in full by each local authority and translated into fee uplifts for care providers, these increased funds could compensate for the expected increases in costs for existing care home residents. “However, many local authorities were not
able to provide operators with adequate fee increases. This is either because their ability to raise adequate funds through council tax uplifts was limited, or the additional money was used to fund greater demand for care. “While the front loading of the council tax
rise may therefore be a short term fix for some councils and care providers, many are likely to lose out again in the 2017 funding round.”
Christmas artwork helps raise money
Two designs, which were created by individuals living in Barchester care homes, have been turned into Christmas cards. The sale of the cards will help raise money
for Barchester’s Charitable Foundation, which helps older people and other adults living with a disability in the UK by offering grants to improve independence, mobility and quality of life.
The two designs were
entered into Barchester’s Christmas card competition by Luisa Shippey from Longueville
Court Care Home in Peterborough and Biddy Bullinger from Ashfields Care Home in Norwich. The money raised will help Barchester’s
Charitable Foundation continue to offer grants to individuals and groups.
Two national awards for Bocking Homes She says: “To win this big award was truly
The New Deanery and St Mary’s Court residential care homes near Braintree are celebrating having won two prestigious National Care Awards at a glittering ceremony in London. Home manager at The New Deanery, Jane
Sadowski scooped the top award in the Care Leadership 2016 category and head of housekeeping Ieva Bagurske was named as Care Housekeeper 2016, at Hilton London Metropole. Bagurske impressed the judges with their
report stating: “Ieva has used her background in hotel services to transform housekeeping in a person centred way. This has been achieved by coaching and role modeling, quality standards, making a difference through choice, innovation and outstanding customer service.”
fantastic, and for a split-second I didn’t believe it. I feel so proud and lucky to have received it “I would like to thank all the residents, team
members and directors for supporting me through this journey, and this award belongs to all of us.” Home manager of The New Deanery Jane
Sadowski was also rewarded for her dedication at the care home near Braintree. The judges were impressed by Sadowski’s
work stating: “CQC has rated her leadership as ‘outstanding’, reflecting the significant journey her home has travelled and a fantastic inspection report. Jane leads by example and restored belief to her team.” Sadowski says: “While I am thrilled to
receive this award, the great care and service at January 2017 •
www.thecarehomeenvi ronment .com
Pictured (left to right): Keith Duffy, Ieva Bagurske and Marshall Les
The New Deanery is most definitely a whole team effort.” Both The New Deanery and St Mary’s Court
have been rated by the CQC as ‘outstanding’ for leadership and ‘good’ in all other aspects covering care, safety, effectiveness and responsiveness.
9 London care home
let to luxury brand Specialist business property adviser, Christie & Co has leased Leah Lodge in Blackheath on behalf of The Merchant Taylors’ Boone’s Charity. The 48 bed care home has been let for
30 years to The Cinnamon Care Collection, an exclusive retirement operator. Leah Lodge opened in early November
following an extensive refurbishment. The luxury home now includes a number of state of the art features such as a cafe area, sun terrace and ensuite bedrooms, as well as a variety of lounges and courtyard gardens. The services offered include residential care, dementia care and respite. Bernard Wynne, director at Christie &
Co, comments, “We were delighted to assist such a renowned establishment and charity in leasing this care home to a growing care company. “We are sure that Leah Lodge will bring a
welcome and much needed service to this highly sought after area of south east London. “We are continuing to see a strong
demand for high end care services in the London region and with the increasing lack of available places, care home businesses are still very attractive both to existing operators looking to grow their portfolios and investors.”
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