Legal advice for social care providers

Our specialist social care lawyers have an in-depth understanding of the key issues affecting the sector. We take the time to understand your business and we are always on hand to provide expert and cost-effective advice when you need it.

The changing legal and regulatory landscape in which care providers operate means owners and managers face a constant challenge to keep up, ensure compliance and maintain profitability.

How our social care lawyers can help you right now

We can confidently say that wherever you are in your journey, we are in a position to provide you with the expertise you need to move into an advantageous position. From looking to buy your first care home, all the way through to employment or regulatory issues, and finally selling off and legacy planning. We can help you right now.

We have a large portfolio of care clients ranging from single home operators to regional and national names. We work with and are recommended by several care associations including Surrey, Oxfordshire, Wiltshire, Somerset, Cornwall, Lincolnshire, Gloucestershire and West Sussex.

“I have always found them to be accessible and quick to respond to any queries. I am very happy to recommend the Social Care team at Royds Withy King to other care home providers”.

Ravi Gidar, Director Gold Care Homes

Leaders in our field, featured in the national press

Here at Royds Withy King we are frequently featured in the national press on matters concerning the health and social care sector. James Sage, who heads up the team has been featured in a number of national publications including The Guardian.

Need a bit of extra HELP?

Your staff are key to the success of your business. Effective recruitment and management of staff will help ensure you have an engaged and high performing workforce for the benefit of your clients and customers.

But as any business owner will know, sometimes it is great to get a bit of help, which is where our HR, Employment, Legal, and Protection services are here for you.

Examples of our work

Pre-sale reorganisation and sale of Gold Care Holdings Limited

We advised the sellers of Gold Care Holdings Limited, a care home operator with 18 care homes, on the circa £90m sale of the Gold Care group to an overseas real estate investor. The transaction included a pre-sale reorganisation and property sale and leaseback of 18 care homes.

Gold Care Homes was established in 1999 and has since grown to operate 21 care
homes through development, mergers and acquisitions. The homes are located
throughout southern and central England, and focus on the private and public paymarkets. The transaction involved 18 of the homes, located mainly in Southern England and Birmingham. The remaining homes will be operated outside the sale and leaseback agreement.

We worked closely with Gold Care Homes and their tax advisers to structure the
deal and provide comprehensive pre-sale support, which included corporate and
property advice.

An important part of our work was advising the owners of Gold Care Homes on various regulation and compliance issues in relation to registering four new operating companies to run and administer the care homes.

Our experience of advising social care providers includes:

Challenging a CQC inspection report and increasing two inadequate ratings to requires improvement, preventing the provider from going into special measures.
Assisting a provider to persuade CQC to increase its rating from good to outstanding in two services.
Persuading CQC not to use the urgent procedure to suspend or impose conditions on providers’ registrations.
Making representations on a Notice of Proposal to refuse registration for a manager and succeeding in getting the manager registered.
Making representations on a Notice of Proposal to cancel the registration of a home care service and helping the provider retain its registration.
Making representations on a Notice of Proposal to cancel the registration of a nursing home and helping the provider retain its registration.
Providing training to directors and managers on CQC’s regulatory requirements.
Representing a care provider in the First Tier Tribunal, full-service safeguarding review and coordinating with their criminal solicitors in relation to a criminal investigation.
Advising social care providers in relation to inquest proceedings and any anticipated claims thereafter.

Read our latest blogs on Social Care

Our Experience

Advising a care provider charity on a whistleblowing; safeguarding and disciplinary matter.
Successfully challenging a CQC inspection report and increasing the overall rating from Requires Improvement to Good.
Advising and representing a group of providers in contract and fee negotiations with a local authority
Advising a specialist care provider involved in a safeguarding investigation
Acting for a national care home provider on purchase of over 30 care and nursing home businesses.
Advising national and regional retirement village operators on site acquisition, construction procurement, unit sales and portfolio management issues.
Acting for three GP Practices taking leases at a major Health Centre in North London from an NHS Trust
Acting for two GP Practices taking underleases at a recently constructed “NHS LIFT” development in South London.
Acting for a GP Co-operative in East London in relation to a lease it was taking in a hospital to deliver an “out of hours” service which it had contracted with the relevant Clinical Commissioning Group to provide.
Share sale of a pharmacy in Devon for c.£1.5m to new entrant including negotiation of new lease to the buyer.
Purchase for multi-chain operator of pharmacy in Gloucestershire for c. £2m including negotiation of management agreement.
Acting for a company on the acquisition of a freehold property (and the bank which was advancing funds) for the purpose of setting up a new dental practice
Acting for a dental technician acquiring a long leasehold premises (and the bank which was advancing funds) for the purpose of setting up a new denture clinic