Care home regulation 'a failure'

Care home regulation is still well below par, according to the Alzheimer's Society, responding to a National Audit Office report.

Inspection checks at care homes have been cut back since the CQC took over regulatory duties two years ago, the report found, although authors conceded the commission had been working with a smaller budget.

The Alzheimer's Society chief executive, Jeremy Hughes, believes that the failure to deliver a robust regulatory system is putting millions of people with dementia at risk

He explained: "The system of care and support is broken. The CQC must change and it's vital the government faces up to the need for a new settlement on care and support."

There are around 750,000 people in the UK with dementia, although estimates suggest this will rise to over one million by 2021.

Find out more about Alzheimer's disease care at Barchester homes.