Church-run nursing homes in cash crisis

Residential and nursing homes for older people run by the Catholic
Church face a crisis deeper than that faced by the rest of the
sector, according to a new report.

More than half of the 50 religious orders running homes in England
have closed them or withdrawn from the sector, says On the
Homes Front, published by the Church’s new official social
care umbrella group, Caritas-Social Action, and the Congregation of
Religions.

Of the remaining homes, 24 per cent said they were “just
surviving”. Many blamed the cost of conforming to new environmental
standards for homes before the government diluted them last year,
combined with higher staff costs.

The report says problems are caused by the lack of a support and
advice body and also the lack of a national voice. It suggests that
Caritas could fulfil a national lobbying role but also calls for
homes to engage more with national secular lobbying groups.

– On the Homes Front from Caritas-Social Action, 39
Eccleston Square, London SW1V 1BX, priced £4.50.