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Ben Goodair @bengoodair.bsky.social · Jul 16

New paper, showing inequalities in social care.

"The poorest areas have far fewer outstanding rated care homes, despite those areas having higher care needs."

@lse-sticerd-case.bsky.social @nuffieldfoundation.org @blavatnikschool.bsky.social @ageuk.bsky.social @carers-uk.bsky.social @scie.org.uk

The BMJ @bmj.com · Jul 15

England’s two tier system deepens social care inequalities.

@andersb-m.bsky.social and colleagues examine how increasing reliance on out-of-pocket payments for adult social care has created a quality divide
www.bmj.com/content/390/...

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Ben Goodair @bengoodair.bsky.social · Jul 15

Many thanks to great co-authors @andersb-m.bsky.social @catherineneedham.bsky.social and Michelle Degli Esposti

And many thanks to our funders @nuffieldfoundation.org

All feedback welcome :)

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Ben Goodair @bengoodair.bsky.social · Jul 15

Our case for change is quite simple: the system doesn't function well for anyone.

A different funding model can simultaneously provide more equitable outcomes whilst preventing extortionate costs for people self-funding.

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Ben Goodair @bengoodair.bsky.social · Jul 15

We argue that

"Beyond these statistics lies a profound human impact: those who cannot afford to self-fund from the outset will have often have no choice but to live in struggling homes simply because they cannot afford to pay."

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Ben Goodair @bengoodair.bsky.social · Jul 15

We also show that state-funded residents live in worse quality care homes across the board - with largest inequalities in the richest areas.

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Ben Goodair @bengoodair.bsky.social · Jul 15

We show that in England the best homes open in the richest places...

... It's almost exactly the opposite for the worst quality homes.

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Ben Goodair @bengoodair.bsky.social · Jul 15

Out today in @bmj.com

What happens in a two-tier system of care where some people pay and others don't?

- Care homes end up providing better care for the richest;

- They open in the richest areas;

- Something people discover when their personal savings run out...

bmj.com/cgi/content/...

England’s two tier care system deepens social care inequalities

Anders Bach-Mortensen and colleagues examine how increasing reliance on out-of-pocket payments for adult social care has created a quality divide In July 2024, the UK government abandoned long awaite...

bmj.com

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Ben Goodair @bengoodair.bsky.social · Jun 18

Funded PhD available to work with @mjwdemography.bsky.social and team answering: "are international migrants living longer lives in worse health than non-migrants in the U.K. are?"

PARA-MOR (ERC/UKRI) @para-mor-ukri.bsky.social · Jun 18

📢 We are hiring! 📢

Are you a UK home student with (or nearing) a Master's degree in Demography, Public Health, Sociology or a related discipline? Do you have a strong interest in ethnicity and inequality? 📈🌍

If so, come and do a PhD @salforduni.bsky.social!

www.findaphd.com/phds/project...

Living longer in worse health? Understanding the immigrant morbidity-mortality paradox in the U.K. at University of Salford on FindAPhD.com

PhD Project - Living longer in worse health? Understanding the immigrant morbidity-mortality paradox in the U.K. at University of Salford, listed on FindAPhD.com

www.findaphd.com

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Ben Goodair @bengoodair.bsky.social · May 12

And happy to share my experiences working with Anders for anyone thinking of applying.

Ben Goodair @bengoodair.bsky.social · May 12

New Postdoc job!!! Esp for Danish-speaking researchers. To work with @andersb-m.bsky.social at RUC.

Answering the 🔥 topic: Why is Denmark outsourcing it's care services... when the for-profit sector are worse?

Please share with colleagues!

Due: 1st June

candidate.hr-manager.net/ApplicationI...

Postdoc position in Social Care Policy and Outsourcing

The Department of Social Sciences at Roskilde University invites applications for a postdoctoral researcher as part of the Carlsberg Foundation Semper Ardens Ac

candidate.hr-manager.net

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Ben Goodair @bengoodair.bsky.social · May 6

Full paper available open access here: academic.oup.com/ageing/artic...

cc: @weownit.org.uk

academic.oup.com

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Ben Goodair @bengoodair.bsky.social · May 6

Brand new research reported by @tomwall.bsky.social this weekend:

Our new article, funded by @nuffieldfoundation.org describes the extent of inequalities in care homes - with better care going to those that can pay for it.

For-profit homes delivering poorest care for state-funded residents:

Let down by the care system: state-funded patients

Residents in state-funded private facilities more likely to receive below standard treatment, according to Oxford University study

observer.co.uk

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Ben Goodair @bengoodair.bsky.social · May 6

With many thanks to @nuffieldfoundation.org for funding the study.

You can read more of our studies on our previous project page:

www.nuffieldfoundation.org/project/evid...

Evidencing the outsourcing of social care provision in England - Nuffield Foundation

New research funded by the Nuffield Foundation will enable investigation of the impact of outsourcing social care provision in England.

www.nuffieldfoundation.org

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Ben Goodair @bengoodair.bsky.social · May 6

Published with @andersb-m.bsky.social + Michelle Degli Esposti + Christine Corlet Walker

At @blavatnikschool.bsky.social + @lse-sticerd-case.bsky.social

cc: @camille-oung.bsky.social , @gerisoc.bsky.social , @nataliegreenpeer.bsky.social , @skinnock.bsky.social

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Ben Goodair @bengoodair.bsky.social · May 6

We conclude that the combined system of:

1) Two-tiered funding
2) Under resourcing of state-funded services
3) Outsourcing of care provision

Means that care is unequally provided between people and areas with wealth vs without.

The Casey Commission should consider all three of these features.

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Ben Goodair @bengoodair.bsky.social · May 6

Secondly, we show that the "ownership gap" in care quality - a widely shown phenomenon of for-profit care homes being worse quality than other kinds - is only true in England when care homes are providing care for state-funded residents.

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Ben Goodair @bengoodair.bsky.social · May 6

Firstly, our research reveals that a problem area for care quality might be for-profit care homes serving state-funded residents.

These are the homes most likely to be rated poorly by inspectors - a potential big concern for Local Authorities paying for these services, and the residents.

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Ben Goodair @bengoodair.bsky.social · May 6

We find that the probability of a care home being rated as good or outstanding is dependent on the number of self-funded residents they care for (x axis in figure = % self-funders).

This is particularly true in for-profit care homes.

This has several large implications...

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Ben Goodair @bengoodair.bsky.social · May 6

We analyse over 350,000 care home residents in England, their funding status, and what that means for the quality of care homes they live in.

We show that self-funded residents live in the richest areas, and are disproportionately in for-profit care homes in the richest areas.

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Ben Goodair @bengoodair.bsky.social · May 6

New paper out today reveals scale of inequalities in social care!

💰 Care homes are better rated with more self-funded residents
👔 But inequalities in care only exist in the for-profit sector
📈 Outsourcing to for-profit sector accelerates inequalities of two-tier care

Link: doi.org/10.1093/agei...

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Reposted by Ben Goodair

Daniel Hewitt @danielhewittitv.bsky.social · Mar 4

🔺Investigation

We have exposed serious neglect of disabled people at multiple homes run by UK’s largest provider of complex care, Lifeways.

Footage and evidence we’ve obtained reveal disbursing and dangerous treatment of residents with learning disabilities t.co/N3GWuuTmbD

https://www.itv.com/news/2025-03-03/disabled-man-left-to-eat-from-bin-itv-news-exposes-appalling-neglect

t.co

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Reposted by Ben Goodair

Anders Bach-Mortensen @andersb-m.bsky.social · Feb 27

Come do a fully-funded PhD with me in Denmark at Roskilde University! You’ll be part of a new exciting project looking at social care privatisation in Denmark with a larger team of researchers at both Roskilde and Oxford University.

Deadline April 27: candidate.hr-manager.net/ApplicationI...

PhD Fellowship – Mapping the role of civil society and non-profit organisations in delivering social services in Denmark

The Department of Social Sciences and Business, Roskilde University, invites applications for a position as PhD of Social Science from September 1st, 2025, or a

candidate.hr-manager.net

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Ben Goodair @bengoodair.bsky.social · Nov 20

Now freely open access in the @bmj.com: How outsourcing has contributed to England’s social care crisis.

We make the case that to "control, restrict, or remove the profit motive in social care, would improve the quality of provision and reduce inequalities".

Read more: www.bmj.com/content/387/...

How outsourcing has contributed to England’s social care crisis

Benjamin Goodair and colleagues argue that growth of private provision in adult social care in England has resulted in worse care and should be rolled back Adult social care in England is in crisis. ...

www.bmj.com

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Ben Goodair @bengoodair.bsky.social · Nov 15

You can read our press release from @blavatnikschool.bsky.social here:

www.bsg.ox.ac.uk/news/outsour...

Outsourcing adult social care has contributed to England’s care crisis, argue researchers

Outsourcing adult social care services in England to the private sector since the 1980s has led to worse care and should be rolled back, argue researchers from the Blavatnik School of Government and t...

www.bsg.ox.ac.uk

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Ben Goodair @bengoodair.bsky.social · Nov 15

New paper in @bmj.com today:

We show how public provision of adult social care has nearly ended over the last 20 years.

We argue it has done so a) worsening the quality of care b) reducing accessibility of services and c) increasing inequalities.

www.bmj.com/content/387/...

How outsourcing has contributed to England’s social care crisis

Benjamin Goodair and colleagues argue that growth of private provision in adult social care in England has resulted in worse care and should be rolled back Adult social care in England is in crisis. ...

www.bmj.com

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