@bilbodog
Just a simple question - but bearing in mind that the training being offered to new carers seems to be very inadequate, pay is awful etc. WHY does it cost so much? There seems to be a huge black hole somewhere?
From what I understand, care in the home costs between £15-20 per hour.
Nearly £9 of that is staff pay (which is assuming the person only needs one person, double it if they need 2), add to that tax and NI the employer pays, insurance for service users and staff, mileage allowance (if they pay it) admin and office fees, uniforms, training and then of course it's a business, so profit too. So it's hardly surprising that in a profit driven business, the corners that can be cut like training, staff providing their own uniform and DBS, poor training because it's cheaper, and not paying mileage happens. So the staff effectively are subsidising it in those situations.
Councils will only pay a certain amount when they fund care, people don't want to pay more and lose more capital or property if they're self funded, and no one wants taxes to go up to pay for it - but they still want the care available.
The expectations keep rising (I'm not saying they shouldn't be high, of course they should) but the money to make it happen doesn't - so we end up with the situation we've got now. Everyone wants top quality care, at bargain basement prices.
The cost of living outstrips what care assistants earn, because despite being called that, it's not a 'living' wage. And in the current climate you can earn the same or more, for far less responsibility, risk and challenge, and people are doing just that, so we've got a shortfall. And with an ageing population, who's care needs are increasing, it's getting worse. 20 years ago I looked after people in their 70's and 80's, a few to their 90's, now it's 80's and 90's and someone over 100 isn't a novelty.
Care has always been expensive and care assistants wages have always been low, training patchy and conditions poor, the standards have risen a lot since I've been in care, for example the use of moving and handling aids rather than doing it physically by hand - but buying, maintaining and training people to use that equipment costs money.
Larger companies, as with most anything, do well it seems, the ones I've worked for have anyway. The stark reality is that good care with adequately trained, paid and treated staff costs money and no one wants to be the ones footing the bill.