Care homes need to take immediate steps to prevent problems in the future.

Our findings have shown that an increase in weekly fees of 2% per annum will result in profits dropping to 70% of current levels by 2021.

And, alarmingly, an increase of 3% will not be enough to keep profits at the current level beyond 2019. So what can care homes do?

Here’s our 10-point guide to help operators address the National Living Wage impact.

1. Understand and control your cost base.
2. Look at the dependency calculation for each resident based on specific nursing / care inputs, and prepare appropriate calculations for the cost of care for each.
3. Look at the profitability of your service provision.
4. Consider changing your service provision, e.g. is there an unmet demand in your area that could command higher fees/better occupancy rate?
5. Ensure key staff are aware of the true regulatory position of the business at any point in time.
6. Ensure that the business is underpinned by strong regulatory compliance.
7. Review all suppliers and supplier contracts.
8. Ensure recruitment and HR procedures are robust and the right people are in the right positions.
9. Ensure you retain good staff to avoid unnecessary cost and disruption.
10.Benchmark your business against your competitors.

If you’d like to find out how we could help your care home tackle the NLW issue please call us today or click here to contact us.