Market analysis
The state of the post- Covid care home nation
Graham Harper, senior director of health and social care at care home lender Virgin Money, takes a look at how the market has developed in recent years, with an eye on future trends
We continue to live in an ageing society and care home beds are in short supply, but how has the evolution of new build care homes developed over the last five years? If we think back to 2016, Brazil hosted
the Olympic Games with Great Britain flourishing in the medals table, placing second overall with 67 medals in total, including 27 gold. The Rio Games were the most
successful for Great Britain since 1908, winning more gold medals across different sports than any other nation at the games. In the same year, there were 106 new
care home registrations bringing a total of 5,497 new beds into the UK market. Land was being acquired on average
at around £15,000 to £20,000 per bed and, while planning applications were coming through quicker than Usain Bolt running the 100 metres, only 22 per cent of planning permissions granted for care homes had been developed in the year, indicating massive potential going forward. Care home designs were also beginning to change. Private dining and cinema rooms were once seen as a revolutionary new concept, but by 2016 both had become a standard feature of new build designs. The focus was shifting to not just providing a room but providing an outstanding experience to each and every resident – many aspired to offering
something more akin to a five-star hotel experience. Bowling greens, indoor potting sheds,
libraries and even the traditional British pub were just some of the new design concepts being introduced. Interior design was, and still is, very much at the forefront of any new care home, with third-party consultants being appointed to assist with the overall grand design. As average weekly fees were increasing,
so was the overall footprint of a home, with bedrooms anything from 16 to 20 square metres. In turn, build costs were around
The impact from the pandemic has also meant that outdoor space has become even more important in the overall design, given inside visits were not permitted during lockdown
November 2021 •
www.thecarehomeenvironment.com
£70,000 to £80,000 per bed. Yet with the UK population of those
aged 85-plus projected to increase from 1.6m in 2016 to 2.8m by 2031, an increase of 75 per cent, is the market evolving fast enough to meet such demand?
The sector’s response to Covid-19 Fast forward to 2021, and as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Olympics were postponed for the first time since the Games commenced in 1896 and also took place in an odd numbered year. The Games have only ever been cancelled before, not postponed, in 1916, 1940 and 1944, due to the two world wars. For the past 18 months, we have lived
through one of the worst pandemics in modern history. Despite this, the healthcare sector has shown significant resilience against the pressures of the pandemic and confidence is returning to the market with a large increase in the number of new homes opening.
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©Alexander Raths -
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