How much a UK care home place costs in 2026
Key Points
- Self-funders pay £1,298 a week for residential care in England in 2026 and £1,535 for nursing care, per LaingBuisson data
- Councils pay £908 and £1,225 a week for the same categories, a gap of up to £20,280 a year on a residential bed
- The CMA found self-funders pay 41% more than council-funded residents and identified a £1 billion annual funding shortfall
- Capital limits of £23,250 and £14,250 in England and Northern Ireland have stayed unchanged in cash terms since April 2010
- Burnham speaks on adult social care on Wednesday and is expected to accelerate the Casey Commission, currently due to report in 2028
A self-funder pays £1,298 a week for a residential care home place in England in 2026, while a council pays £908 for the same type of bed.
Figures compiled by carehome.co.uk from LaingBuisson market data set the England averages for 2026:
- Residential care: £1,298 a week for self-funders, against £908 a week for councils.
- Nursing care: £1,535 a week for self-funders, against £1,225 a week for councils.
- Dementia residential care: £1,564 a week for self-funders.
- London self-funders: £1,548 a week residential and £1,759 a week for nursing care.
At those rates, a self-funded residential place runs to £67,496 a year and a nursing place to £79,820.
The council-commissioned equivalents come to £47,216 and £63,700. The gap reaches £390 a week on a residential bed, or £20,280 a year, and £310 a week on nursing.
The Competition and Markets Authority examined the market in 2017 and found self-funders paid 41% more on average than local authority-funded residents for the same care.
The CMA identified a funding shortfall of £1 billion a year across the UK because councils paid fee rates below the costs care homes incur, which led operators to charge higher prices to self-funders.
The practice spread through the sector: around 90% of care homes now operate a differential pricing policy, against 20% in 2005.
Self-funders make up 41% of care home residents and council-funded residents 49%, with the NHS commissioning around 10%. The four largest providers hold 15% of beds and the top 25 hold 31%, while 80% of providers operate a single home.
Changes on the horizon
Prime Minister Andy Burnham told the BBC the NHS will collapse under the weight of caring for people who did not need to enter the system if the government fails to reform social care.
He said he would put whatever political capital he has into fixing social care and would not want to leave office without bringing in substantial change, though he declined to set a timeline.
He will address the public on adult social care on Wednesday (29 July), where he is expected to speed up the Casey Commission rather than unveil a new system; Louise Casey currently reports her final recommendations in 2028.
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch wrote to Burnham setting two conditions for cross-party support: that any solution treats people who saved and made provision fairly, and that the money comes from reducing current spending rather than tax rises or increased borrowing.
