Devon considers ‘commissioner only’ role

Devon county council is now considering closing most of its remaining directly-run care homes and becoming solely a commissioner of care from the independent sector. Currently the local authority contracts 85% of its care home places from the private sector, paying on average £504 a week for residential care in private care homes in 2012/13, according to the Health and Social Care Information Service, compared to an average of £970 per week in its own homes.