Families in England could be forced to choose who is allowed to visit loved ones in nursing and care homes, it has emerged.
The government has confirmed it is considering restricting visits to homes to just three named visitors over the Christmas period, saying it is the natural consequence of the uncertainty caused by the Omicron variant.
Under new measures being considered by minsters to tackle increasing cases of Covid, families and residents in England will have to choose which three visitors enter the care or nursing home over Christmas, with changes to named visitors allowed only under strict conditions.
The limits have been described as “devastating” and “a body blow” for families, and a nightmare for residential homes, which are already struggling to recruit enough staff.
The campaign group Relatives & Residents Association called the proposed cap “hugely disappointing”.
A spokesperson said: “It just takes us back to where we were many months ago and the impact it will have on families will be devastating. It’s absolutely heartbreaking for families to have to choose who can visit them. How do you pick those three people? There are many people who have been living in care for a while and thinking that this could be their last Christmas, so it’s just going to be devastating and lead to absolutely heartbreaking decisions for so many families.”
Nadra Ahmed, chair of the National Care Association, said homes had already organised Christmas entertainers, school choirs and other festive events for residents. “It will be very sad if these have to be cancelled,” she said.
Ahmed questioned how care homes, already struggling to recruit sufficient numbers of staff, would have time to arrange restricted visits. “The logistics of making these new restrictions work are time-consuming,” she said. “There is already a big issue with staffing levels in homes. Where are the extra hours going to come from to facilitate this new layer of organisation?”
The Independent Care Group said such a move would be disappointing but that it felt inevitable. Its managing director, Mike Padgham, said: “A restriction on visitor numbers as we approach Christmas, or just after, would be a body blow to those in nursing and care homes and to their families and friends who will be looking forward to spending more – not less – time together over the festive period. But, as restrictions across the country become tighter and tighter, such a move does seem inevitable whilst we, as a country, fight to keep everyone as safe and well as we can.”
Changes to visiting guidelines are not expected to be announced imminently but a government source has confirmed that “reductions are the next natural step to current guidance in the light of the Omicron uncertainty”.
There are currently no government restrictions on the number of friends and family members allowed to visit care homes.
