In recent years, we've noticed a growing trend among domiciliary care providers: the desire to expand their services into the supported living sector.  

This shift not only broadens their service offerings but can also streamline their operations, making it an attractive prospect for many in the industry. 

The Appeal of Supported Living 

The transition from domiciliary care to supported living can bring several advantages: 

• Cost-Effective Operations: Unlike domiciliary care, where staff travel to various locations, supported living centralises care in one place, significantly reducing travel costs.
• Improved Staff Retention: The fixed location model of supported living can make recruitment and retention easier, as it offers a more stable work environment.
• Enhanced Service Continuity: With care providers managing both housing and support, there's potential for more integrated and consistent care delivery. 

Bridging the Knowledge Gap 

While many domiciliary care providers excel in areas such as care delivery, council frameworks, and regulatory compliance (CQC and Ofsted), the transition to supported living can introduce challenges, such as finding and securing suitable properties. This process involves dealing with property owners, investors, landlords and a host of new considerations that may be unfamiliar to those in the domiciliary care sector. 

It's important to also note that all councils and the CQC require a separation between housing and care provision. This often involves partnering with a "Registered Provider of Social Housing" (RP), which could be a Housing Association, Community Interest Company, Charity or even the Local Authority.  You can read more about registered providers here : https://www.supportedlivinggateway.com/news/working-with-registered-providers/  

For domiciliary care providers looking to expand into supported living, proper preparation is key.  

Our online course is specifically designed to help care providers understand what they need to do to engage effectively with property owners and investors, helping you secure the right properties for your supported living business. 

You can buy the course online to watch and learn in your own time or if you would prefer to attend the course in person our next in person course is happening in Solihull on 15th October, where there will be an evening networking event too and you’ll be able to meet property owners, investors and other experts within the supported living sector.

You can find more information about the event here.