• Who We Are

    wHO wE are

    The Relatives & Residents Association exists for older people needing, or living in, residential care and the families and friends left behind at home.

  • What We Do

    WHAT WE DO

    We are here to support and inform residents, families and friends to find out all they need to know about residential care and to help them if things go wrong. Additionally, we speak out on behalf of a sector who cannot always speak out for themselves.

  • Helpline

    our helpline

    We offer information, comfort and support via a daily helpline. We take the time to listen and give whatever support is needed.

  • Influencing Policy & Influence

    influencing policy & practice

    We take note of your concerns and relay them to the people who can make changes. We send out potent messages and push for improvements for the benefit of vulnerable older people in care.

Support our call for changes making care home owners
and providers fully accountable

Support our petition calling for change

The Relatives & Residents Association is calling for the reinstatement of monthly checks by care providers for older people, which will force them to ensure that their businesses are being ethically run. We want to see legislation which will guarantee that home owners are not able to distance themselves when things go wrong and will be called to account when staff are convicted for abuse. We believe new regulations are urgently needed to make providers fully accountable for the health, safety and dignity of their residents.

We are calling for the reinstatement of regulations requiring that providers:

  • inspect their care homes monthly to check the standard of care provided;
  • report their findings to the regulator, the manager of the home and company directors;
  • ensure quality of care is improved when care is of a poor standard.
We want robust regulations that ensure the regulator, the Care Quality Commission, has the power to:
  • Impose serious penalties for carrying on a care home without a registered manager.

LATEST NEWS

15 October 2013         

R&RA Submission to Health Select Committee on CQC

 
......R&RA welcomes the appointment of Andrea Sutcliffe as the new Chief Inspector of Social Care and looks forward to a similar drive to overhaul the inspection of care homes as there is for hospitals....But warns that any planned ratings system will only be worthwhile if backed up by regular robust inspections, in addition to using the intelligence and knowledge of relatives and, again, undertaking surveys of their views..."
 

7 October 2013

Poor nutrition in care homes
tonight at 7.30 pm
BBC Inside Out (South and East regions only)


Judy Downey, chair of R&RA talks about the stories from our Helpline revealing that for many residents, all too often there is little choice or the help they need to make meals the pleasurable experiences they should be.

...Leaving people malnourished is a form of abuse and with around 20,000 residents without family or friends in touch, we do not know what is happening to many of these people....

Continue Reading

Our Campaigns and Projects

  • Is CQC Working?
  • Tell Us About Your Care Home

  • CQC Not Working CampaignIS CQC WORKING?

    Time running out for older people at risk in care

    The Relatives & Residents Association is calling on the government to make urgent changes to the Care Quality Commission – the body responsible for regulating care homes for older people. We want to see a complete change in he way this organisation works and protects older people in care homes.

  • Tell Us About Your Care HomeTELL US ABOUT YOUR CARE HOME

    We are working with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) to help relatives' voices to be heard. We are looking at how calls to our helpline can inform CQC and help them protect residents. During the pilot, anyone contacting us who is worried about quality of care will have their information passed immediately to CQC. In turn, CQC will update us with any action they take.