CARE homes that are run for profit are failing their residents, Scottish Labour warned today after 17 establishments were sent “letters of concern” by the country’s Care Inspectorate.

The letters required immediate action to rectify failings.

Of the 17, Ashwood House in Callander was told that, after repeated warnings, it is to lose its official registration, meaning it may face closure. Only one care home run by a local authority has received a similar warning.

Scottish Labour said the disproportionate number of complaints made to the watchdog over the quality of care for older people in privately owned care homes underlines the need “to eliminate the profit motive from any future national care service.”

Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has agreed to investigate the possibility of launching a national care service in Scotland under pressure from Scottish Labour.

Scottish Labour leader Richard Leonard said the number of letters being issued is “deeply worrying” given the crisis in care homes throughout the coronavirus pandemic.

He said: “It seems there is no rationale presented by the Care Inspectorate for which care homes are being chosen, but these reports make clear that those run for profit are more likely to be a concern.

“So it does prompt the question: does the Care Inspectorate recognise that care homes run for profit may not always prioritise residents’ wellbeing? 

“I am determined to push this government to take the profit motive out of care for good, a goal the First Minister agreed with last week.” 

The Care Inspectorate said it had received complaints about 76 per cent of Scotland’s privately owned care homes.