Key facts
- Inquiry found government planners treated the care sector as an "afterthought".
- Untested patients discharged from hospitals into care homes spread the virus.
- Blanket restrictions on outside contact caused "immense emotional harm" and "profound isolation".
- Families expressed anger and distress over the isolation and deaths of loved ones.
Families of care home residents have reacted with anger and distress to a public inquiry report that found the sector was an "afterthought" to government planners during the Covid-19 pandemic. The report concluded that the decision to discharge untested patients from hospitals into care homes led to the virus spreading "like wildfire," while blanket restrictions on outside contact resulted in "immense emotional harm" and "profound isolation" for vulnerable residents.
Amy, whose grandparents Eva and Eric were separated and isolated in care homes, described the situation as "cruel and pointless." Her grandfather, Eric, died of Covid-19 in 2022 after experiencing extreme loneliness and fear. Roger Dennison's father, Lucius, also died of Covid-19 in April 2020 after being isolated and only able to communicate through a partially opened window.
Care workers also described the period as "terrifying," with one senior worker, who asked to be identified as Nick, recounting the lack of personal protective equipment and the immense mental health toll of watching residents die at a high rate. Catherine Bennett and Diana, whose father and sister respectively died in care homes, expressed similar sentiments of anger and abandonment, feeling that care homes were "thrown under a bus" while government officials "partied in Downing Street."