Care Home Fees : A guide to Elderly Care

This is a major cause of heartache and stress for many people. Care homes aren’t cheap and the costs reflect the type and level of care they offer and their facilities. Other factors include which part of the UK they are in, the location and the home itself.

As you might imagine a large home with up to the minute facilities in an upmarket, leafy location will cost more than somewhere with limited facilities in an inner city area.

It is practically impossible to give exact figures on the costs of care mainly due to these and other factors.

A nursing home usually costs more than a residential home because it offers specialised nursing by high qualified nurses.

This is what you need to take into account when thinking about the costs of a care home:

• Type of care -dementia, Parkinson’s, respite etc
• Level of care - residential, nursing or specialist?
• What area of the UK - may cost more in the south than other areas
• Location - town, city or country?
• Style of the home - old or modern?
• Your room - size, layout, furnishings and fittings
• Services - activities, entertainment, physiotherapy, hairdresser etc

What do care home fees cover?

The costs of a care home cover 24 hour personal care, and 24 hour nursing care if necessary. It also includes accommodation, laundry, meals and any other facilities within the home.

As a rough guide, fees for a residential care home can range from £400 to £800 (or more) a week.

As a rough guide, fees for a nursing home will range from £500 to £1,000 (or more) a week. If you do require nursing care then you are eligible for the registered nursing care contribution (RNCC) at £101 per week which will help to reduce the cost.

In effect, you could be looking at a yearly cost of £30,000 or more for a care home.