New tool sets national fee standards for supported living
-
News
We are proud to launch a new costing tool, developed with our More Than a Provider partners, that will help secure the future of supported living for the 150,000 people with learning disabilities and autistic people across England.
At Certitude, we believe everyone should have the right support to live a gloriously ordinary life – full of meaning, connection, and opportunity. This new tool is a vital step in making sure that support is funded fairly and sustainable.
Until now, there has been no independently verified way to establish what great supported living really costs. Unlike the NHS, there is no recognised national fee for high-quality, Care Quality Commission-compliant support that offers value for money from public funds.
The Sustainable Supported Living Costing Tool addresses this gap by proposing national fee parameters designed specifically for supported living. Developed with management consultancy PPL and our More Than a Provider partners, the tool calculates fair fee rates for different types of support – daytime, waking night, and sleep-in – using a transparent framework.
It can be customisable, allowing local authorities and ICB commissioners to create a shared benchmark for fee.
It also:
- Reflects actual costs, including wages, pensions, and overheads.
- Allows adjustments for local needs and recruitment.
- Promotes consistency and fairness in negotiations with commissioners.
The report A ‘gloriously ordinary life’: Securing the Sustainability of Supported Living explains why the costing tool is needed. It also features Ramesh who talks about the great support he gets from Certitude and how it helps him enjoy the things he loves.
Aisling Duffy, Chief Executive at Certitude, said: “At Certitude, we see every day how the right support enables people to live gloriously ordinary lives filled with meaning and connection. To ensure the sustainability of personalised, community-based support, providers like us need fair and sustainable fees that enable us recruit and retain skilled colleagues, invest in training, and maintain strong quality.
“Fair fees are the foundation for this, and the costing tool and associated report provide a vital step towards recognising the true value of supported living. It gives commissioners and providers a shared, transparent way to understand what sustainable supported living really costs.”
A copy of the report, the costing tool, and a guide on how to use is available on the More Than a Provider website: www.morethanaprovider.org.uk
