Self funders

[Trixieboo87]

Hi , can care homes have nicer rooms specifically for self funders ?

When I was a care home manager if there was a choice of rooms then it would depend whether the client was self-funding or received public funds as to which room I offered them.

So the answer to your question is yes.

Yes, it's quite common.

often its better decor and a guaranteed en-suite

Not necessarily but there may be nicer rooms only available to self funders who are prepared to pay extra.

Thankyou just that my relative moved to a care home which was beautiful no question if whether they are self funding
However there was something in the room that wasn’t suitable and my relative was moved to a smaller dated room .
When I questioned solutions to move my relative back the response was the room is for self funders which I find confusing as that was the room that I viewed and the room that my relative was placed in to start with

Sounds like she 'got lucky' with the room the first time, or it was never intended to be her room long term anyway.

It does happen quite frequently, especially in care homes that have agreements with local hospitals that they will take discharge to assess patients.

If they take someone in and they only have space in one of their self funding rooms and then it turns out after 4 weeks when all the assessments have been completed that they will actually be council funded then they either 'downgrade' them when a cheaper room or whinge about it A LOT to the social worker.

It’s quite deceiving to place somebody in a room & not explain there’s a chance that they could be moved and there was no mention of this to my relative depending on finances
on viewing the home the first room was like a showroom to get my relative in

If the room my relative is in is one of the nicer ones you get when self funding (which she is), then I'd hate to see the ones you get put in when the LA are paying. 🫤

It is literally 8' X 6' and the drabbest, dingiest room I have ever seen and for that privilege, she is paying 1400 a week. 🤬

I’m just saying that it’s misinformation I view a room my relative is placed there no mention of moving depending on final finance assessment report on who’s paying for what .
Slight glitch in the room which could be resolved but moved to a drab room .
No explanation until I questioned it asking for a solution to be told it’s a self funding room

Interesting. For clinical reasons MIL wasn't self-funding, but the family had funds available for a much nicer, bigger en suite room than standard. At the time we were looking I felt management were trying to discourage us from opting to top up, and I wondered why. Perhaps they would indeed have charged more money, plus the top-up, to someone who was fully self-funding.

Yes it absolutely happens and is allowed. Maybe she could have stayed in the room apart from the issue, but as it got raised they thought "Ah heck, we'll just move her to a funded room anyway".

Are you otherwise happy with her care?

I have iffy vibes about homes that are sales-y like that. It does sounds like they maybe did it on purpose to get you in. I’d be annoyed too. But if everything else is good there are worse things than a drab room.

If it upsets your relative would they be able to afford to pay extra at all? I think you can top up funding to pay for fancier rooms and things.

yes I think this is very likely to have happened.

It's unusual for care homes to have things in clients bedrooms that are unsuitable. Do you mind if I ask what it was?

Care homes will charge self funders more than the council rate (or nhs) and it is often quite a difference. This will mean that self funders are often cross subsidising funded places, as homes may or may not break even on them. They make their money on the funded places.

it seems reasonable that the people who are charged the most get the better rooms.

if they showed you a similar room to that originally given (even if there was something wrong with it) I don’t think it was dodgy. If the “show” room was much better than that originally allocated, it is.

I was shown one room we can call it the show room I was very impressed , even more so when my relative moved into it .

The slight issue could be rectified but instead I feel that the manager got us in the door and changed rooms they must have known my relatives needs . At no point wax I told that it was a self funding room as I was just shown one
Over all the care is ok but I’m annoyed