The organisation representing Scotland's independent care sector says it is inevitable that a “huge number of care homes will close their doors” if there is no improvement on the current offer of a 6% increase in the National Care Home Contract rates.

Scottish Care says its members have rejected two offers made by the local government organisation COSLA even though it knows it is realistically as much as councils can afford.

The organisation says the offer is not enough to either meet the sector’s desire for a minimum £12 an hour for care workers and for all other staff working to receive the Scottish Living Wage – or to meet the increased cost of energy bills.

COSLA’s Health and Social Care Spokesperson Councillor Paul Kelly, says councils cannot improve on the current offer:

“Following an intensive period of negotiation, in March of this year local government made an offer to the care home sector. This was the highest ever proposed increase to the National Care Home contract, is the best offer we can make and is at the limits of affordability. We note that Scottish Care have acknowledged this.

“Local government budgets have been under severe pressure in recent years. Despite this the offer sought to recognise the essential and invaluable role of care homes and their staff within our communities and was inevitably shaped by the severe financial and inflationary pressures we collectively face.

“We understand that as part of Scottish Care’s rejection of this offer there was direct engagement with Scottish government in relation to the financial challenges across the sector.”

The Scottish government points out that it is not a contractual party and is not involved in the negotiations. But, in a statement to healthandcare.scot, Scotland’s Social Care Minister Maree Todd said:

“The Scottish government is disappointed the negotiations for the National Care Home Contract between COSLA and Scottish Care have not been able to reach resolution.

"We hope that appropriate arrangements can be agreed and put in place as soon as possible.”

Scottish Care says its hopes were raised when Humza Yousaf, in his speech marking a new start after taking over as First Minister, said he wanted to pay £12 an hour, though “not absolutely immediately”.

Speaking at the National Care Home Conference last week, Ms Todd told delegates that there is no timescale for the increase but last night added:

“We are committed to improving social care services and know well the workforce challenges that the adult social care sector in particular faces. While we are not able to afford to do this immediately, we have committed to a timetable that sets out how this government will get to £12 an hour for adult social care workers."

Scottish Care says it is now seeking urgent clarification, pointing out that, by already funding the new NHS Agenda for Change settlement, the government has created a situation where a care worker in the NHS undertaking the same role as a care home worker is now being paid over 19% more.

It points out that the existing annual funding settlement has proved too little for many operators:

“We have sadly witnessed the largest number of closures the sector has experienced in the last few months, and the very real fear is that this will escalate at speed. Unfortunately, it is the small, rural, and remote private and charitable care homes which are not managing to continue operating."

Social Care Minister Maree Todd told us:

“Pay and conditions play an important role in the wellbeing and retention of our social care workforce, and we are committed to improvement. Over the last couple of years we have increased the pay for social care workers by more than 14%.”

She added:

“We are looking at how we can plan for, attract, train, employ and nurture the workforce, working with COSLA to deliver consistency of improved pay and conditions and improving access to training and development to ensure a career in social care is attractive and rewarding.”

70% of care home residents in Scotland are funded through local councils.

The annually-reviewed National Care Home Contract has been in place for the last 15 years placing a cap on profits and setting the rates councils will pay, most recently at £719 a week for a residential care home place and £838 a week for combined residential and round-the-clock nursing care – the equivalent, Scottish Care says, of £5 an hour for complex care and support.

COSLA says its offer remains on the table and councils will continue to ensure care homes are paid on time, including to enable adult social care workers to be paid the Real Living Wage.

 

Read more: Social care: Parity not pound signs; Regulator promises focus on supporting workforce; Care home visits promote wellbeing;

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