Carehome.co.uk report reveals strongest growth in purpose-built homes with over 60 beds last year, while self-funded fees leapt by 10 per cent amid rising cost pressures for providers.
Larger, purpose-built care homes for older people were the largest growing type of provision last year, with 60-79 bed facilities up by 3.6 per cent, according to a report published today.
Data collected by carehome.co.uk showed that the number of smaller homes with 20 beds or fewer fell by around 6 per cent in the 12 months to December 2025.
The average care home now provides 47 beds, and purpose-built homes now make up well over half (57 per cent) of provision, reflecting a ‘shift towards modern, accessible environments designed to accommodate increasingly complex care needs’, the Caring Britain – How the care home landscape is changing report said.
Costs jumped by ten per cent for self-funders during the same period, revealing the impact of rising wage costs, energy prices and ‘broader inflationary pressures’, according to the report, which revealed disparities in fees depending on region, ranging from 7.8 per cent in the East of England to 11.3 per cent in the North West.
The report – which is based on carehome.co.uk information and reviews for all 10,500 care homes for older people in the UK – also highlighted ‘uneven’ access to specialist services, particularly for people living with dementia.
While many homes are equipped to support residents in the early stages of the disease, far fewer are set up to meet higher-level dementia needs, with more than half (57 per cent) of London homes offering such support compared to just a third in Wales (33 per cent) and the North West (34 per cent), the report said.
The findings come after the government said it would appoint a “strong” dementia leader to “drive forward action” on care for people with the disease following an urgent call for a ‘tsar’ by the social care independent commission chair Baroness Louise Casey.
Regional ratings’ divide
Today’s report also showed regional ‘variations and gaps’ in Care Quality Commission (CQC) ratings.
It showed that, while just under seven in ten homes in England are rated as ‘Good’ or ‘Outstanding by the CQC, this rises to 80 per cent for London and the North East, while just under two third (63 per cent) hit the same standards in the West Midlands and two third (66 per cent) did in Yorkshire and the East of England.
Will Blackwell, CEO of Carehome.co.uk owner Tomorrow’s Guides, said the report highlighted how the sector is “fundamentally reshaping” in response to “growing demand from an ageing population, increasing complexity of need, workforce shortages and sustained cost pressures”, and that “access to specialist care such as dementia care is dictated by a postcode lottery.”
Professor Martin Green OBE, Chief Executive of Care England, said the report showed the “government is delivering a significant financial and geographical divide across the country”.
“Public under-funding is driving smaller care homes out of the sector, and the only way to stay viable is to increase the size and scale of each home. There is clearly a need for high-quality care, but government policy is denying access and choice to publicly funded citizens,” he said.
He added that the “fact that care home fees have risen by 10 per cent shows the enormous financial pressures that are placed on care home providers” who “reluctantly” increase prices but have no choice if they are to “sustain care homes and the care they provide”.
