Standards ‘must not be changed’

The national minimum standards for care homes should not be changed
in any way, according to the National Association of Inspection and
Registration Officers.

The consultation on the amended environmental standards for care
homes finished last week. Under the revised standards, care homes
which were opened before 1 April 2002 would be exempt from meeting
some standards on space, baths, doorways and number of single
rooms.

Nairo has argued that there should not be any changes to the
national minimum standards because “they describe what vulnerable
people have a right to expect from care home life”.

The organisation said that if the standards were watered down there
would be no incentive for providers to invest in improving their
homes.

“Long-term negotiated settlements between providers and regulators
are preferable to wholesale relaxations of reasonable standards,”
Nairo added, calling for care home standards for England to be of
similar quality to those in Wales and Scotland where there have
been no proposals to relax them.