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There are 14,910 registered care homes in the UK, with 456,087 beds available in them. Out of all the care homes, 235 (1.58%) have the lowest rating, which is inadequate. There are 2,479 (16.63%) care homes that need to improve. Most care homes, 11,119 (74.57%), are doing a good job. Only 617 (4.14%) care homes have the best rating, which is outstanding. Overall, most care homes in the UK have a good rating, with a small percentage being outstanding.

Care Homes in the UK

Specialisms in Care Homes

This table presents an overview of care home specialisms, detailing the number of care homes, beds, and ratings for each specialism. Care for adults over 65 years is the most prevalent specialism, encompassing 10,814 care homes and 416,424 beds, with 73.08% of care homes rated as good and 3.96% as outstanding. Following this is care for adults under 65 years, which includes 7,921 care homes and 245,929 beds, displaying a similar distribution of ratings: 72.69% good and 4.10% outstanding.

Dementia care homes are widespread, with 7,671 care homes and 340,344 beds, where 71.49% are rated as good and 3.81% as outstanding. Eating disorder-focused care homes, totaling 198 locations and 4,019 beds, exhibit 76.26% good-rated care homes and 2.53% outstanding. Learning disabilities care homes account for 5,351 locations and 65,245 beds, with 77.78% of care homes rated as good and 4.30% outstanding.

Mental health conditions care homes constitute 4,076 locations and 111,848 beds, with 73.60% of care homes rated as good and 3.48% outstanding. Physical disabilities care homes include 5,850 locations and 217,322 beds, where 71.83% of care homes are rated as good and 4.34% outstanding. Sensory impairment care homes involve 3,371 locations and 113,998 beds, with 71.76% of care homes rated as good and 4.24% outstanding.

Lastly, care homes dealing with substance misuse problems consist of 289 locations and 6,604 beds, with 77.86% of care homes rated as good and 2.08% outstanding. Overall, the majority of care homes across all specialisms have good ratings, while a smaller percentage is rated as outstanding.

Specialism Care Homes Beds Inadequate Requires Improvement Good Outstanding
Caring for adults over 65 yrs 10,569 404,857 1.5% 18% 73% 3.89%
Caring for adults under 65 yrs 7,804 241,242 1.28% 17% 72% 4.05%
Caring for children 299 2,926 0.33% 8.36% 72% 6.36%
Caring for people whose rights are restricted under the Mental Health Act 132 3,276 1.52% 9.09% 85% 3.03%
Dementia 7,480 331,007 1.6% 19% 72% 3.74%
Eating disorders 195 3,926 0.51% 15% 78% 2.56%
Learning disabilities 5,212 64,120 1.13% 13% 76% 4.36%
Mental health conditions 4,010 110,510 1.85% 17% 73% 3.54%
Physical disabilities 5,667 209,604 1.54% 17% 72% 4.24%
Sensory impairment 3,223 107,383 1.71% 17% 72% 4.1%
Services for everyone 15 451 0% 20% 80% 0%
Substance misuse problems 283 6,355 0.35% 17% 77% 2.12%

Care Homes By County

In terms of care homes and beds, London has the highest number of care homes (2,889) and care home beds (66,999). Rutland has the lowest number of care homes (22) and care home beds (663).

When it comes to care home ratings, the majority of care homes in most counties fall under the good category. Some counties with particularly high percentages of good care homes include Cumbria (63%), Cornwall (59%), and Rutland (59%). However, there are some counties with notably high percentages of inadequate and requires improvement care homes, such as Rutland with 9.09% inadequate and 20% requires improvement and Buckinghamshire with 6.59% inadequate and 19% requires improvement.

In contrast, some counties exhibit a higher percentage of outstanding care homes. Notable examples are Suffolk (6.48%), Gloucestershire (5.85%), and Oxfordshire (5.22%). On the other hand, West Midlands has the lowest percentage of outstanding care homes at 0.61%.

In summary, the data shows that most care homes in the UK have a good rating, but there are still areas where improvement is needed. Some counties have a higher percentage of outstanding care homes, while others struggle with more inadequate and requires improvement ratings.

County Care Homes Beds Inadequate Requires Improvement Good Outstanding
Bedfordshire 325 7,811 2.77% 17% 44% 1.54%
Berkshire 391 10,247 2.56% 11% 49% 4.6%
Bristol 195 5,225 0.51% 9.23% 56% 2.05%
Buckinghamshire 300 9,443 3.33% 20% 49% 3%
Cambridgeshire 321 10,088 1.87% 7.17% 58% 4.36%
Cheshire 494 18,603 3.85% 15% 53% 1.22%
Cornwall 401 8,460 5.99% 15% 59% 1.75%
Cumbria 281 8,027 1.42% 9.25% 63% 1.78%
Derbyshire 612 16,810 2.61% 16% 53% 1.63%
Devon 963 22,211 4.98% 8.62% 51% 4.98%
Dorset 556 16,344 3.24% 8.81% 57% 3.42%
Durham 477 17,001 3.15% 7.76% 53% 3.56%
East Riding of Yorkshire 382 11,236 4.45% 18% 52% 2.88%
East Sussex 714 17,289 2.24% 15% 56% 1.4%
Essex 931 25,195 4.62% 14% 57% 1.5%
Gloucestershire 547 13,608 2.01% 9.69% 55% 5.85%
Greater Manchester 1,090 36,765 3.21% 13% 54% 1.84%
Hampshire 1,095 27,844 2.74% 12% 53% 3.47%
Herefordshire 135 3,024 0.74% 16% 56% 3.7%
Hertfordshire 453 15,308 3.31% 16% 56% 2.43%
Isle of Wight 155 3,270 4.52% 10% 53% 1.94%
Kent 1,193 28,607 5.62% 16% 48% 1.59%
Lancashire 965 26,404 3.83% 14% 52% 2.18%
Leicestershire 494 13,054 4.66% 17% 50% 0.81%
Lincolnshire 708 21,985 3.67% 14% 51% 3.81%
London 2,889 66,999 2.53% 12% 51% 1.07%
Merseyside 764 25,162 6.41% 17% 50% 1.05%
Norfolk 622 16,379 6.59% 19% 42% 2.89%
North Yorkshire 662 21,747 3.63% 14% 57% 1.96%
Northamptonshire 492 12,664 5.08% 18% 45% 4.07%
Northumberland 252 6,913 1.98% 13% 44% 2.38%
Nottinghamshire 716 20,930 3.35% 15% 49% 4.33%
Oxfordshire 249 8,821 1.21% 11% 55% 5.22%
Rutland 22 663 9.09% 4.55% 59% 0%
Shropshire 298 8,171 2.69% 15% 49% 1.68%
Somerset 700 18,514 4.29% 15% 53% 1.29%
South Yorkshire 720 24,046 3.06% 12% 55% 1.39%
Staffordshire 614 18,968 4.4% 17% 51% 1.63%
Suffolk 386 13,370 3.63% 11% 46% 6.48%
Surrey 773 22,855 3.49% 12% 56% 2.46%
Tyne & Wear 679 21,550 1.62% 8.25% 47% 3.09%
Warwickshire 286 8,215 3.5% 13% 55% 1.05%
West Midlands 1,476 38,189 4.34% 18% 47% 0.61%
West Sussex 583 16,118 4.46% 15% 54% 2.92%
West Yorkshire 1,026 33,120 5.26% 19% 49% 1.75%
Wiltshire 411 10,546 4.14% 15% 55% 2.19%
Worcestershire 367 10,662 2.18% 16% 49% 2.18%
Last updated: 22 Mar 2023