Care Homes: Safety Ratings

Baroness Monckton of Dallington Forest Excerpts

Wednesday 5th February 2025 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Merron (Lab)]

I assure my noble friend that the department has discussions with the CQC at fortnightly meetings. Those discussions are about performance, including clearing the backlog of registration of new providers, and this will continue in order to make the necessary improvements that my noble friend seeks.

[Baroness Monckton of Dallington Forest (Con)]

My Lords, does the Minister agree that a lot of the problems in care homes would be alleviated if becoming a carer in a care home required certified training, supervision and a defined career path, rather than it being a job of last resort for itinerant job seekers, as it seems to be in many homes at the moment?

[Baroness Merron (Lab)]

I certainly agree with the noble Baroness that the workforce is absolutely crucial, and I very much value the contribution that is made by those who work in care homes. Perhaps it would be helpful to say that, just last month, we announced that the care workforce pathway, a new national career structure for adult social care, will be expanding to support opportunities for career progression and development. This is the direction of travel that we want to take.