Council pitches in to help Milton Keynes care homes struggling to get PPE for staff

Milton Keynes Council is giving every care home a payment of £200 per patient to be used for PPE supplies.

Nationally there is a shortage of PPE and as a result prices have soared.

Council leader Pete Marland said: "Proper supply of PPE is vital for helping care homes stop the spread of the virus. We know there have been challenges in getting this equipment, and more demand has forced up prices"

"We cannot allow increased prices to get in the way of fighting the virus, keeping people safe and saving lives.”

The money will be paid to all care homes, whether council-run or privately owned.

It will add up to around £300,000.

Pete said: "Nationally, care homes in England are struggling to contain outbreaks of the virus amongst residents, many of whom are very frail or fall into groups most at risk from the Covid-19 virus."

He added: "Many care homes have reported shortages of PPE equipment or difficulty accessing supplies. The rising demand and poor supply of PPE has led to costs of the equipment rocketing, putting pressure on already tight care home budgets."

Pete said it was "only right" that the council uses the resources given to them or reserves that we have put aside for an emergency to fund vital

supplies for the care homes.

“We have only been able to do this, and provide other support, because of years of good financial management. However we do remain concerned that in the long term this crisis has put a £37m hole in our budget, so we will continue to ask the Government to ensure the council receives proper funding so other vital services don’t have to pay the price later for saving lives today.”