UK care homes are at risk of facing financial ruin due to the introduction of the Living Wage in April, with the sector predicted to hit a £500m funding gap next year, according to data by Company Watch. This comes as Four Seasons, the UK's largest care home operator, revealed last week widening losses as a result of rising costs and lower occupancy; and care home operators and charities claiming that as many as half of the UK's care homes could go bust next year unless the government increases financial aid to local authorities. Britain's care homes, of which 90% are privately owned, have already been hit by a 6% real-terms reduction in council fee rates since 2011, in a climate of rising energy bills and rents. The Department for Work & Pensions (DWP) has said it will review its plans to introduce an increase in income support payments (IPS) from April 2017, but is expected to delay any decision until after
UK care homes are at risk of facing financial ruin due to the introduction of the Living Wage in April, with the sector predicted to hit a £500m funding gap next year, according to data by Company Watch. This comes as Four Seasons, the UK's largest care home operator, revealed last week widening losses as a result of rising costs and lower occupancy; and care home operators and charities claiming that as many as half of the UK's care homes could go bust next year unless the government increases financial aid to local authorities. Britain's care homes, of which 90% are privately owned, have already been hit by a 6% real-terms reduction in council fee rates since 2011, in a climate of rising energy bills and rents. Staffing costs are also being affected by a decline in student places and tighter immigration restrictions.