For the past 6 years, Carterwood has collected quoted self-funded fee rates for over 9,000 elderly care homes across Great Britain. This is the most comprehensive dataset available and provides and invaluable insight into the shifting landscape of self-funded fees. This year’s research explores how the market is adjusting and what the numbers reveal about resilience, risk, and sustainability in 2025.
Check out the key findings below, and download the full report for detailed regional analysis, consumer insight from Lottie, and a closer look at how self-funded fees and costs have evolved.
Key findings from 2025
Overall fees
- Average weekly personal care fees reached £1,302, an uplift of 8.5% year-on-year.
- Nursing care fees now stand at £1,696, an 8.3% increase.
Staff costs
- Staffing costs rose by 6.3%, according to Carterwood Collab data.
- The April 2025 National Living Wage uplift (+6.7% to £12.21/hour) marked the third consecutive year of steep pay growth, alongside National Insurance changes adding further pressure.
Impact of home age
- Homes registered since 2020 command higher fees: £1,611 (personal care) and £1,968 (nursing).
- Pre-1990 homes average lower fees of £1,223 and £1,635 respectively.
Impact of care quality
- Outstanding-rated homes in England continue to achieve a premium.
Average quoted fees: £1,486 (personal care) and £1,877 (nursing).- This equates to premiums of 15.6% and 11.7% compared with homes with all other ratings.
Public funding
- Local authority fees also rose but remain well below private rates.
- £811 (personal care, +5.8%) and £907 (nursing, +7.2%) per week in 2025.
Fee yield
- When factoring occupancy, the average fee yield in Q2 2025 was £1,188 per week.
- Equivalent to around £3.7m annual revenue for a 60-bed home.
5-year growth
- Fees have shown consistent long-term growth.
- CAGR since 2020: 8.7% (personal care) and 8.2% (nursing).
New this year: Consumer insight from Lottie
Lottie analysed 1,200+ fee uplifts, showing how price rises affect demand.
Outlook
The 2025 findings underline the “balancing act” facing the sector. Self-funded fees continue to rise, but increases are increasingly offset by higher staff costs and broader operating pressures. Newer and higher-quality homes sustain strong premiums, while local authority funding uplifts remain modest by comparison.
Looking ahead, the challenge is clear: maintaining financial resilience without pushing beyond what local markets and consumers can absorb. Demand remains strong, but affordability and sustainability are becoming sharper pressure points.
If you would like us to explore any aspect of elderly care home fees across Great Britain in our next report, please get in touch via info@carterwood.co.uk and we’d be happy to discuss it.
