Today's report is a "devastating account of one of the darkest episodes in our country's history", a campaigner for the Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice pressure group has said.

Jean Adamson says the report shows the government knew the care sector was "extremely vulnerable" to a pandemic but it still failed to act until it was "too late".

She says it shows that former health secretary Matt Hancock's claim of throwing a protective ring around care homes was a "cruel lie".

The campaigner says members of the government made the decision to discharge hospital patients into care homes despite having "no medical expertise".

"[They] made a decision that became a death sentence for our family members," she adds.

The Scottish government says it will take the "necessary time" to "fully and carefully consider" the Covid inquiry's findings.

"We recognise the loss, hurt and suffering experienced by people, particularly among those who relied on, delivered or supported adult social care services during an exceptionally challenging period," it says in a statement.

It adds that it acknowledges the "significant impact of the pandemic" on those who rely on care, their families and the "many unpaid carers who provided essential care".

"Throughout the pandemic, the Scottish Government’s overriding objective was to protect people and minimise loss of life," it adds.

Image source, Getty Images

Barring families and loved ones from visiting people in care homes had "far reaching and devastating consequences", chair inquiry Baroness Hallett continues.

The visits provide "essential human contact, routine, and stability," she explains, adding that "profound isolation" and abandonment felt by residents caused "immense emotional harm".

"Most distressingly, some people were not permitted to be with their dying loved ones," she adds.

On DNACPR notices, which are orders to not resuscitate someone, Hallett says here were "concerns these notices were improperly imposed on groups of people" such as those that are older or had learning disabilities.

She says the discussions on DNACPRs were "too often rushed or non-existent". A mandatory end of life training is needed, she adds.

On the workforce in care homes, Hallett says carers felt they were "overlooked and undervalued",

There are around 5.8m unpaid carers in UK - during pandemic they were "forced to provide complex care, for longer hours, with little or no respite".

Government actions to protect workers and users of adult social care "came too late", she adds.

This was the result of failing to plan, and underlines why the recommendations in the report "must be acted upon now before the next pandemic strikes," she concludes.

We'll bring you more from the report shortly - stick with us.

Image source, Covid Inquiry

Politicians had to make "undoubtedly difficult decisions," Hallett says, citing one of those as being discharging untested people from hospitals into care homes.

A lack of testing capacity meant medically fit patients were placed into care homes without knowing if they have Covid or not, she adds.

Those with symptoms were prioritised when tests were available, and it wasn't until mid-to-late April 2020 that all hospital patients sent to care homes were tested.

Hallett says the decision to discharge people was "necessary" but "given the known vulnerability of care home residence" guidance should've advised they would be isolated in care homes.

She says this "was perhaps the only, truly effective precaution available to care homes at that time".

On PPE, some workers had to wear homemade equipment, made from fabrics, bin bags and rain ponchos, which was "wholly unacceptable". Better planning could have ensured better supply, she says.

We can bring you more now from inquiry chair Baroness Hallett, who has been speaking after the release of the latest report.

A simulation exercise in 2016 tested the UK's response to a pandemic, chair Baroness Hallett says.

It found the social care sector was found to be a "particular concern", but Hallett says when Covid-19 emerged, recommendations had "not been completed", leaving ministers to make decisions "without the information they needed".

The "claim that a so-called protective ring had been thrown around care homes right from the start was unfounded", she continues. "Quite the opposite was true."

The adult social care sector "appeared to be something of an afterthought", she explains, while the virus spread rapidly.

Nick Triggle
Health correspondent

CPR when a person’s heart stops beating can be effective in fit and healthy individuals, but it can sometimes cause more harm than good for frail people or those living with life-limiting illnesses.

Doctors can decide not to resuscitate people - as can individuals themselves in advance.

But this should be done on an individual basis and the use of blanket do not resuscitate orders (DNACPR) is considered unlawful.

But the inquiry said it heard evidence of GPs imposing blanket DNACPRs on care home residents.

And it pointed to records showing a sharp increase in orders being put in place – they jumped from 16,800 to 26,500 in the first nine months of the pandemic.

This concern mirrors an earlier Care Quality Commission investigation which found evidence of unacceptable and inappropriate DNACPRs being put in place.

Alison Holt
Social affairs editor

We can bring you more now from the latest Covid inquiry report.

Between March and mid-April 2020, about 25,000 hospital patients in England were discharged from hospitals into care homes, according to figures from the National Audit Office.

The inquiry says this was necessary to free up much needed hospital beds as the virus took hold, but the lack of testing capacity meant patients were discharged without knowing whether or not they had Covid-19.

It says by the end of January 2020 there were clear signs suggesting the virus could be transmitted by people who showed no symptoms, but when patients were moved from hospitals to care homes initially there was no recommendation to isolate new arrivals.

The report calls this “a significant omission".

It also says the guidance to care workers to stay at a two-metres distance from the people they were caring for was “wholly unrealistic” given that most care happens at close quarters.

It concludes such advice provided little or no protection for the resident or the care worker.

Image source, Covid Inquiry

Baroness Hallett is speaking now. She says the Covid-19 pandemic "totally disrupted" the lives of people in care homes and had a "devastating impact".

The impact was "particularly acute" for those living in care homes, she says.

There was a "pressing and obvious need" to prevent the virus from entering the homes but it "did enter", she says, "with tragic consequences".

She says the report sets out how shortages and major policy decisions created an environment in care settings where the virus could "spread like wildfire".

Baroness Heather Hallett, the chairwoman of the UK public Covid inquiry, is due to speak shortly following the release of the inquiry's findings on the impacts of the pandemic on the care sector.

You can watch live at the top of this page, and we'll be providing text updates on all the key points in this page.

Nick Triggle
Health correspondent

Unsurprisingly, the difficulties care workers faced in accessing personal protective equipment (PPE) is a key theme of this report.

Getting hold of it was extremely difficult in the first wave of the pandemic, the inquiry said.

It was felt hospitals were prioritised for supplies, leaving care workers to resort to some very desperate measures.

The report cites cases of workers using festival waterproof ponchos, painters’ overalls and bin bags as makeshift PPE.

It said this was wholly unacceptable, saying better planning could have mitigated the problems. Although it acknowledged supply problems were a global issue.

Nick Triggle
Health correspondent

The 287-page report into how the pandemic affected the care sector listed a number of failings.

This includes shortages of PPE, the way hospital patients were discharged into care homes and the lack of financial support for care workers so they could afford to stay away from their jobs if infected.

It also criticised the strictness and length of limits on visits, saying they caused enormous harm to care home residents and their loved ones.

Alison Holt
Social affairs editor

The claim by the former health and social care secretary, Matt Hancock, that the government had put a “protective ring around care homes from the very start” of the pandemic is criticised as “unfounded” by the inquiry.

It concludes it does “not accurately reflect the lack of action taken to protect care homes across the UK in March and the first half of April 2020".

The report says all the devolved administrations knew prior to the pandemic of the “extreme vulnerability of care home residents to respiratory viruses”. It continues, adding that despite this care homes received “insufficient protection at the time they needed it".

Baroness Hallett acknowledges ministers faced difficult decisions, but says by the end of January 2020 there were clear signs suggesting the virus could be transmitted by people who showed no symptoms.

The report points to the lack of PPE and the decision to rapidly discharge hospital patients into care homes without sufficient testing or isolation facilities as contributing to the pressure care homes were under.

Nick Triggle
Health correspondent

Action to protect people in care settings in the UK came too late, causing devastating consequences, the Covid inquiry says.

The sixth report of the inquiry concluded in the early stages of the pandemic the care sector appeared to be “something of an afterthought” and there was no “protective ring” put around care homes as claimed.

There were more than 43,000 recorded deaths involving Covid in care homes between March 2020 and July 2022.

Staggering numbers of care home deaths mean this report's findings will be closely watchedpublished at 11:41 BST

11:41 BST

Alison Holt
Social affairs editor

More than 43,000 care home residents who died in the UK have covid recorded as a cause on their death certificates. Many of those deaths happened in the first three months.

Those staggering numbers and the heartache that lies behind them makes today’s Covid inquiry report into what happened in adult social care particularly important.

The care sector, which provides support to older and disabled people in care homes, supported housing and in people’s own homes, was already underfunded and short-staffed.

By the time the virus reached the UK, it was known to be particularly devastating to older people and those with disabilities and medical conditions.

However, the focus was on protecting the NHS because of the concerns it could be overwhelmed. The Scientific Advisory Group for emergencies - which provides expert advice to the government - started meeting at the end of January 2020, but minutes show care homes were mentioned for the first time in their twelfth meeting on 3 March.

This apparent lack of consideration of this vulnerable group is one of many issues the inquiry has had to examine.

Those working in care say they struggled to get protective gear and food supplies, there was a lack of medical help, they were desperately short-staffed as people fell ill, and in mid-March 2020, the NHS rapidly discharged about 25,000 medically fit patients into care homes in England to free up hospital beds.

Many care providers spoke of being put under intense pressure to take these patients, when they had minimal PPE and often little ability to isolate new arrivals. This, and staff moving between locations, were later blamed for the spike in care home deaths in April 2020. At its peak, on one single day, 540 residents died with Covid.

The then health and social care secretary, Matt Hancock, caused huge anger when he said in May 2020 that the government had put a “protective ring” around care homes from the start. The report’s verdict on that will also be key.

Image source, PA Media

The hearings into how the pandemic affected the care sector stretched across several weeks in June and July 2025.

Ministers involved in the government's Covid-19 response were among those testifying before inquiry chair Baroness Hallet, as well as impacted families and representatives from organisations around the care sector.

Some shared the upsetting stories of the death of their loved ones.

Ann, from Wales, told the inquiry's Every Story Matters project that her dad, who had dementia, was living in a care home when the pandemic hit.

When visits were limited "he didn't have the understanding of why we were outside his window", she told the hearing. He became increasingly confused, tearful and begged to be allowed to die. Ann was told of his death by phone in the middle of the night.

Nicky, meanwhile, told the hearing that she spotted that her mother was dying from Covid on a video call before staff had noticed, and described that time as "traumatic".

"She didn't die with dignity and there was no alleviation for her pain and suffering," she told BBC News at the time.

The hearing also heard how one care worker in Durham described how the virus "spread like wildfire".

"At one point, 67 out of 87 residents tested positive, as well as a high percentage of our staff. We were all terrified we would take the virus home to our families," the care worker said.

Image source, PA

This latest report from the Covid Inquiry will examine the impact of the pandemic on the private and public adult social care sector in England, Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland by:

• Considering the consequences of government decision-making (such as restrictions) on people living and working within the care sector. This includes freeing up capacity in hospitals by discharging patients into adult care and residential homes

• Addressing the steps taken in adult care and residential homes to prevent the spread of Covid-19
• Examining the capacity of the adult care sector to respond to the pandemic
• Looking at the human impact of the pandemic on residents and their families, such as deaths in care homes and restrictions placed on visitors

Today the latest report from the Covid-19 Inquiry will be released, showing its findings on how the pandemic impacted the care sector.

More than 43,000 care home residents who died between March 2020 and July 2022 have covid recorded as a cause on their death certificates.

Public hearings were carried out last summer, with testimonies from Helen Whately MP, former minister of state for care, Matt Hancock, former secretary of state for health and social care, and representatives from social services around the UK.

One civil servant told the hearings that the number of deaths in care homes amounted to "a generational slaughter". Others described the death of their loved ones as traumatic and undignified.

The inquiry, chaired by Baroness Heather Hallett, has already set out reports for five other modules. Those have included investigations into the impact of Covid-19 on the NHS, the vaccine rollout, PPE availability, resilience, and government preparedness.

We're expecting to see the full report at around midday, and we'll bring you live updates on its findings in this page.