Preparing for CQC’s Returning to Good Approach For some adult social care providers, six or seven years may have passed since their service was last assessed and awarded a CQC Good rating. A lot can change during that time. Leadership may be different, staff teams may have changed and the needs of the people using…
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Understanding CQC’s Returning to Good Programme CQC is returning to eligible adult social care services with ageing Good ratings to confirm whether those ratings remain accurate. The CQC Returning to Good programme is focused on services where CQC considers the existing Good rating likely to be maintained, with current priorities generally including ratings that are…
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External management support is often associated with care homes already in serious difficulty. In reality, waiting until a service reaches crisis point can reduce the choices available to owners. The need for additional management capacity frequently becomes apparent much earlier. The challenge is recognising when normal operational pressure has developed into a problem the existing…
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The organisation that owns a care home is not always the organisation responsible for running it. For some services, ownership and operation sit together. The same provider owns the property, employs the workforce and operates the regulated service. In other structures, the building may belong to a landlord, property company or investor while a separate…
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The value of a care home cannot be understood purely through the building. Care homes are operational assets. Their long-term commercial position is influenced by the quality, stability and sustainability of the service operating within them. For owners and investors, this means asset protection has to extend beyond property maintenance. A building may remain in…
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Care home operator underperformance rarely begins with a single event. More often, the position deteriorates through a series of smaller changes that gradually place more pressure on the service. Leadership may become less stable. Agency expenditure may rise. Occupancy can begin to soften while reporting becomes less reliable. Actions identified through audits may remain unresolved…
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Care home ownership brings together two distinct responsibilities: protecting the long-term value of the asset and ensuring that the service operating within it remains stable, compliant and sustainable. For an owner-operator, those responsibilities sit within the same organisation. For landlords, investors and other stakeholders, ownership and day-to-day operational control may be separated. In either case,…
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Choosing a care home management partner is a significant decision. Whether you are an owner looking for greater operational control, an investor concerned about performance, or a provider requiring additional management capacity, the organisation you appoint may influence everything from CQC compliance and workforce stability to occupancy and financial performance. The challenge is that care…
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When a care provider encounters serious operational or financial difficulties, it is easy to assume that the future of the care home is equally uncertain. In reality, a provider failing and a care home failing are not always the same thing. The building may still be valuable. Residents may continue to receive good care. Staff…
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A CQC rating rarely comes under pressure because of one isolated problem. Concerns around care quality may be the most visible sign that a service is struggling, but the underlying causes often stretch across the whole operation. Leadership may have become inconsistent. Staffing pressures may be affecting continuity. Occupancy could be falling, costs may be…
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