As part of the government’s adult social care reform agenda, local authorities were required, over the course of 2022, to complete a fair cost of care exercise to arrive at a shared understanding with providers of the local cost of providing care. In addition, local authorities were required to begin work on a Market Sustainability Plan, the purpose of which is for local authorities to assess the current sustainability of local care markets, and to detail plans to ensure their continued sustainability in the context of the move towards implementing reform.
Further details about the exercise are available at the links below.
GOV.UK - People at the Heart of Care: adult social care reform white paper
GOV.UK - Market Sustainability and Fair Cost of Care Fund 2022 to 2023: guidance
In undertaking this exercise, local authorities were tasked with identifying the lower quartile, median and upper quartile costs in the local area for the following care categories:
- 65+ care homes
- standard residential care
- residential care for enhanced needs
- standard nursing care
- nursing care for enhanced needs
- 18+ domiciliary care
This exercise has now concluded, and we would like to thank providers for participating and for their cooperation throughout. In line with government guidance, our cost of care reports (Annex B) for domiciliary and residential care markets respectively can be seen under 'documents and downloads' on this web page.
Helpdesks and further information
- faircost@warwickshire.gov.uk (Warwickshire County Council Fair Cost of Care team)
- marketsreform@dhsc.gov.uk (Department of Health and Social Care and for questions specific to the policy)
- marketsandcommissioning@local.gov.uk (CHIP - jointly delivered through ADASS and LGA - and for general questions)
Market Sustainability Plan
In line with government guidance, our Market Sustainability Plan, detailing plans to support local provider markets, has been published and can be found under 'documents and downloads' on this web page.
The first section of the plan assesses the current sustainability of local care markets; the second section assesses the impact of future market changes between now and October 2025 (given that charging reform is no longer planned for October 2023); and the final section details plans to address the sustainability issues identified.
Please feel free to contact faircost@warwickshire.gov.uk with any questions or requests for further detail.