Care home managers rank quality of care as their main priority for third year

Delivering high quality care and support is the most significant issue within a care home setting managers have described.

The result of the National Care Forum ballot conducted at the NCF Managers Conference in South Gloucester earlier this week means managers have ranked quality of care for residents as their top priority for the third consecutive year.

Quality of care was ranked top by 22 per cent of respondents, followed by the issue of recruitment and retention of staff at 21 per cent, with funding also included in the top three.

Des Kelly, executive director of the National Care Forum, said: “This annual check on what matters most to managers provides some valuable insights. Managers have shown, yet again, that quality is their number one concern. Recruitment and retention also attracted a high proportion of the vote and the relationship between the two is significant.

“I am not surprised to see funding rise up the list but I am particularly encouraged by the emphasis on values, compassion and creativity featuring in the Top 10. The NCF managers ballot shows very clearly that it is people management issues and their underpinning values that lie at the heart of manager’s priorities.”

Now in its tenth year, the National Care Forum was created to promote quality outcomes for people receiving care services through the not-for-profit sector.

Three new entries in the top ten showed managers are now becoming more focused on the media and portrayal of care services, as well as prioritising compassion and the arts within care homes.