The real cost of COVID-19 for care providers
This year’s Cost Pressures Report is even more important than in previous years. We are all aware that funding in care has been recognised as a long term pressure in government for years, but we feel sharing the reality of your current situation is vital to protecting the future of our sector.
We’ve surveyed members and used external research to build a picture of the here and now for care providers in the South West, taking into account the impact of COVID-19, EU withdrawal and the worsening financial situation facing many. We hope our report can be a tool for change as local authorities in the South West and national government begin to dissect the events of the past year.
We included a snapshot of our findings, actions and statistics, read on and share far and wide. If we’ve missed anything, or if you have any further thoughts, chat with us.
Headline findings...
There was a significant shortfall between government funding made available during the pandemic and additional costs for the provider.
The eligible spending rules for the Infection Control Grant were not viewed as helpful and meant that some providers could not spend the total grant.
Amid an outbreak where the cost of paying staff to be off with COVID-19 and/or to the self-isolate agency was high, the Infection Control grant could be quickly used up, leaving minimal funds to cover any additional costs. One respondent said they started to pay staff to self-isolate but then had to stop because they couldn’t afford to do it without the grant.
Many residential care services for Older People reported significant reductions in occupancy levels due to the pandemic from around 90% to 80%. They will not be able to survive if this continues. This loss of income not only impacts their sustainability and cashflow but is also a key area that is not be covered by the additional funding.
Providers are concerned about the impact of Brexit on both driving away their existing EU staff and preventing new staff from the EU from entering the UK to work in social care.
Despite rising unemployment, the ongoing recruitment crisis is not resolved for many. For some, the pandemic has actually made their recruitment situation worse. In their October 2020 report ‘The state of the adult social care sector and workforce in the South West region’, Skills for Care cited that there are 9,700 positions (or 6.7% of those available) were vacant in the South West at any given time.
Our actions...
We examined what it might look like to maintain parity on costs. We calculated that residential services would need a funding uplift of 2.314%, domiciliary care services would need 2.257%. But this will do nothing to address reductions in occupancy levels, the sector’s inability to recruit the staff it needs or to cover ‘over and above’ costs related to COVID.
As a nation, we should be paying our residential care staff a Real Living Wage to help address recruitment issues and ensure care staff are given the value and recognition they deserve. To achieve this, we estimate that Residential Care providers would require an increase in the region of 7.03% on their annual income. In recognition that many Domiciliary Care providers already pay about the current Real Living Wage, our view is that a significant premium would be needed on top of the Real Living Wage to sustain this much-needed sector.
Providers must be properly reimbursed for the consequences of COVID-19. We argue that there should be a comprehensive list grounded in the experience of providers in terms of where their additional COVID-19 related costs actually are. Support should also cover lost revenue associated with reductions in occupancy beyond a certain level.
The full report has now been sent to your local authorities including Bristol City Council, South Gloucestershire Council, North Somerset Council and B&NES, we hope to share our conversations soon.