A) What is the Infection Control Fund?
The Adult Social Care Infection Control Fund’s main purpose is to support adult social care providers, including those who do not have a contract with the local authority, to reduce the rate of COVID-19 transmissions in and between care homes, as well as supporting the wider workforce resilience.
The fund is worth £600 million and will be issued in two instalments. The first instalment was paid to local authorities on 22nd May 2020. The second is due to be paid in early July.
To receive the second instalment, local authorities should have returned a care home support plan, otherwise no further funding will be allocated. The payment of the second instalment is also dependent on the first being used for infection control measures and being used in its entirety.
B) Who is the Fund for?
The Fund is primarily for residential care providers. However, a small percentage of it can be used to support domiciliary care providers and the wider workforce resilience to deal with COVID-19 infections.
Local authorities may only fund care homes within their geographical area and must not exclude providers just because they do not have a contract with the local authority.
Residential care providers will be required to have completed the capacity tracker at least once and committed to completing the tracker consistently to be eligible.
C) Measures that can be Funded
Local Authorities must ensure that 75% of the Fund is used to support the following measures in care homes on a ‘per beds’ basis:
- Staff who are isolating in line with government guidance (including those with suspected symptoms of COVID-19 waiting for tests and staff isolating following a positive test) receive their normal wage whilst doing so
- Staff limited to only working in one care home are compensated for a reduction in hours due to restriction on their movements
- Limiting or cohorting staff to individual groups of residents or floors/wings by employing more staff or making physical changes to the care home, i.e. separating floors/wings
- Support the recruitment process of additional staff
- Limit the use of public transport for members of staff
- Provide accommodation for staff who choose to stay separated from their families
The remaining 25% can be used at the discretion of the local authority, either to be allocated to care homes or domiciliary care providers to support with COVID-19 infection control.
D) Restrictions on the use of the Funding
The Fund cannot be used to address any general financial pressures providers might be experiencing or to cover costs of activity completed before the Fund was announced. The purpose of this Fund is to reduce the rate of COVID-19 transmissions in and between care homes and support wider workforce resilience.
E) Recipient Requirements
Those allocated funding from the local authority must use it for infection control measures and provide the local authority with a statement certifying that they have spent the funding on those measures by 23rd September 2020.
Full guidance on the Infection Control Fund can be found here.