Concerns are being raised that the Government’s plans to encourage care workers to carry out a greater number of NHS checks could end up creating a further financial headache for homes.
Care staff across the country are already being trained to carry out a wider range of checks aimed at boosting the health of the elderly and the vulnerable.
And while the plan is part of a wider approach to relieve pressure on NHS services, there are growing fears that the social care sector will be unable to cope with increasing demand.
Caroline Abrahams of Age UK has highlighted the fact that there is a significant shortage of community nurses and care professionals.
And Nadra Ahmed, head of the National Care Association, wants to know how existing staff can gain fresh skills without any additional funding.
But for Health Secretary Wes Streeting the move to put more NHS services in the hands of care workers appears non-negotiable as part of his wider vision to ‘break the cycle of failure and build a new national consensus around social care’.
Earlier this month he said: “That means that whoever’s in government, not just in five years’ time, but 10 years, 20 years, 30 years time, hopefully will have built the national consensus. That means that every government delivers for social care in the way that, frankly, successive governments have failed in the past.”
Although Labour’s plans have been widely applauded, it has been reported that Chancellor Rachel Reeves faces a ‘generational fiscal challenge’. That challenge could manifest itself in tax rises which could force some care homes, operating with small margins, to close.
Business Energy Claims knows better than most the financial hurdles facing care home owners and managers in 2025. And CEO Callum Thompson said: “Every penny counts. If we can help more care homes reclaim money owed to them due to a missold energy policy then that frees up the funds that can really benefit residents.”