We’ve recently launched our Saffron Care Catering product, and we’ve been looking into the research and statistics of the reduced funding for residential care homes, and the nutrition connected to it, throughout the UK. However, since we’re a Yorkshire company, we wanted to get a picture of the statistics involved in local authorities covering Yorkshire and the Humber. So we asked the councils!
In this article, you’ll find out:
- Some of the questions we asked all councils in Yorkshire and the Humber
- A table of the data from their responses
- What we found surprising
Some of the questions we asked all councils in Yorkshire and the Humber
In our Freedom of Information requests, we asked a number of questions relating to the last 3 financial years, including some specific to providing nutrition in the care home setting:
- The number of older people living in residential care homes for the last three years, with and without nursing.
- The number of care homes the local authority contracts with
- The care homes budgets, with a breakdown of nursing and non-nursing budgets
- Whether any amount within the budget is ringfenced for nutrition and catering
- How many care home residents have been admitted to hospital for the primary reason of malnutrition
- How many, and which, care homes in their area, use or abide by the ‘Healthier and more sustainable catering: a toolkit for serving food to older people in residential care’
A table of the data from their responses
| Council | Number of older adults living permanently in council-funded residential care homes | Number of care homes offering council-funded residential care | Total budget for 2017/18 | Total actual budget 2016/17 | Total actual budget 2015/16 | Total actual budget 2014/15 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Calderdale | 435 as of September 2017, of which:
|
39 in 2017/18, of which:
|
£8.960 million comprised of funding for residential places in:
|
£9.848 million comprised of funding for residential places in:
|
£9.976 million comprised of funding for residential places in:
|
£10.202 million comprised of funding for residential places in:
|
| Barnsley | 868 as of 31 August 2017, of which:
|
43, of which:
|
£21.711 million total. | £19.883 million total. | £18.145 million total. | £18.143 million total. |
| Bradford | 1,330 in 2017/18. | 148 in 2017/18. | £13.869 million total. | £13.080 million total. | £13.945 million total. | £15.222 million total. |
| Doncaster | 1,122 aged 65 and over in 2017/18, of which:
|
50 in 2017 within the Doncaster Authority area, of which:
|
£20,661 million total, of which:
|
Social care budget not previously split by age, so no figures available for older people’s care homes. | As in 2016/17. | As in 2016/17. |
| East Riding of Yorkshire | 1,726 as at July 2017, of which:
For July 2016, 1,758 total. |
Care home brochure provided, seeking clarification. | Provided breakdown of estimated cost only:
|
Breakdown of estimated cost only:
|
Breakdown of estimated cost only:
|
Breakdown of estimated cost only:
|
| Hull | Provided breakdown as of 13 September 2017:
|
Provided breakdown as of 13 September 2017:
|
£26.114 million total. Also provided breakdown for around 1,044 external placements:
|
£28.705 million total. | £27.363 million total. | £29.254 million total. |
| Kirklees | Not yet provided. | Not yet provided. | Not yet provided. | Not yet provided. | Not yet provided. | Not yet provided. |
| Leeds | Provided breakdown in 2017/18:
|
85 on the Council’s framework contract, although contracts with all 88 independent sector care homes in the city. | Provided breakdown:
|
Provided breakdown:
|
Provided breakdown:
|
Provided breakdown:
|
| North East Lincolnshire Clinical Commissioning Group (which administers social care on behalf of North East Lincolnshire Council) | 501 as of 31 August 2017, of which:
For 2016/17, 502 total. |
47, of which:
|
Not provided for current year: analysis only from statutory year end returns. | £12.979 total, comprising:
|
£12.885 million total, comprising:
|
£12.951 million total, comprising:
|
| North Lincolnshire | Not yet provided. | Not yet provided. | Not yet provided. | Not yet provided. | Not yet provided. | Not yet provided. |
| North Yorkshire County Council (administers social care on behalf of Craven, Hambleton, Harrogate, Richmondshire, Ryedale, Scarborough and Selby Councils) | 2,307 as of 31 March 2017, of which:
For 31 March 2016, 2,421 total. |
214, of which:
|
£38.322 million total. | Not provided. | Not provided. | Not provided. |
| Sheffield | 1,721 as of 31 31 March 2017, of which:
For 31 March 2016, 1,773 total. |
Not held, although answered ‘Potentially all care homes in the area and also outside of the area if their needs cannot be met within the area. Customers have a choice of which care home, based on their needs and bed availability.? | Not held. Answered ‘We do not have a specific budget for care homes. There is a budget for all customers, but budget is allocated based on customer needs as part of self-directed support rather than subdivided by setting or service type.? | Not held. | Not held. | Not held. |
| Wakefield | 900 as of 15 September 2017, of which:
For 31 March 2016, 963 total. |
47, of which:
|
£29.306 million total, of which:
|
£29.545 million total, of which:
|
£27.194 million total, of which:
|
£29.460 million total, of which:
|
| York | 492 as at 31 March 2017.524 as at 31 March 2016. 586 as at 31 March 2016. |
4 care homes. Breakdown of nursing/non-nursing not provided. |
Provided breakdown:
|
Provided breakdown:
|
Provided breakdown:
|
Provided breakdown:
|
What we found surprising
Of course, it’s no surprise to see the real reduction in social care funding, as we explored in our round up of recent research figures for care homes and nutrition.
However, what we did find surprising was that most of the information requested (apart from the numbers of residents, care homes, and budgets), was not held by councils, or at least not held in a ‘retrieveable format’. In most cases, councils did not hold centrally the number of residents who paid top-up fees – with the exception of Calderdale, North Yorkshire County Council, Wakefield, and York Councils. We were also interested to find out that Sheffield City Council is the only one in Yorkshire that has no specific budget for care homes, instead choosing to fund this area of social care on the basis of personal need. Fascinating!
We also found that throughout Yorkshire (and, we suspect, the country at large), there is uniformly no ringfenced budget for nutrition within the general care home budget. It’s down to individual care home managers to decide from their pot of allocated funds received from the local authority. In addition, most councils do not collect any information on whether the ‘Healthier and more sustainable catering’ toolkit is being used within care homes at which they fund placements, or the number of residents admitted to hospital from their care home with malnutrition.
We did have these reassuring answers on these questions, though:
Question 8. How many, and which, care homes in your area, use or abide by the ‘Healthier and more sustainable catering: a toolkit for serving food to older people in residential care’?
Hull City Council said: ‘We could only answer regarding the establishments that we own/operate and as such the response would be nil.’
The catering to Hull City Council establishments is now provided via an SLA with Hull Catering who adhere to the following guidance provided by the National Association of Care Catering;
- Nutritional Standards for Adults
- How to provide good nutritional care and comply with CQCs fundamental standards
- Menu Planning and Special Diets in Care Homes
- Quality Standard Indicators – Prime cooked meals for home delivery
Public Health and Adult Social Care are in the process of developing joint working in order to deliver a Healthier and more sustainable catering in care homes across Hull but as the current moment we have service specifications which suggests that all providers should ensure people are getting a healthier and nutritious meal in care homes and ensure wherever possible to have choice of options for their meals.’
North East Lincolnshire Clinical Commissioning Group said: ‘The CCG does not hold this information, however, all care homes have to meet the Eatwell principles. Each care home is required to use the CCG nutritional screening tool which is a requirement of the local Quality Framework.’
Question 10. Where possible, can you send any additional local statistic reports or research you have published, or use, relating to the provision of nutrition in residential care homes for older people.
Doncaster Metropolitan District Council said: ‘Our Workforce Development Team offer a Healthy Foods and Special Diets course which has the aim ‘to raise awareness and understanding of healthy eating and catering generally, but also for people with specific nutritional and dietary needs’. We have only run 2 courses this year (28th June 2017 & 25th October 2017) but neither of these has been fully booked. 28th June had 9 delegates and 25th October has 6. The maximum number of bookings is 16.’
East Riding of Yorkshire Council said: ‘The Local Authority promote the Nutrition Mission programme in Care Homes.’
Leeds City Council: ‘Leeds City Council has not published any such information however, we do use national documentation such as the NHS England’s Commissioning Excellent Nutrition and Hydration 2015-2018 to support our work.’
What do you think of their responses?
Find out more
To find out more about how Saffron Care Catering can help the care home industry provide nutrition via a truly person-centred approach, call us on 0114 281 6060, email us at info@fdhospitality.com, or fill out our contact form.
