It is quite unfair to blame the Care Standards Act for the closure of care and nursing homes.

The national minimum standards set out fair and reasonable rules which promote the human dignity of the frail and elderly. There are a number of care and nursing homes which achieve them.

One of the great problems for both care and nursing homes is staffing. Too many care staff are underpaid, under-trained and under-motivated.

This is an area which needs looking into carefully.

Funding is also a serious problem. Although fees appear to increase annually, this never seems to meet increasing costs. Therefore, more money is needed from central government to pay for the raising of standards.

Efficient management at all levels is also needed. The days when a married couple could open a care or nursing home and run it as amateurs are over. The care of the elderly is (or should be) professional and complex.

National minimum standards must be preserved at any cost and the financial resources found to accomplish this. The elderly people of this country have contributed to the wealth and freedom we now enjoy. We must not fail them.

-Rev John Webster, Hove