Care homes invited to join new improvement programme in southern Scotland

Care homes across Dumfries and Galloway and the Scottish Borders are being invited to apply for a programme designed to help staff develop their skills, improve services and achieve better outcomes for people receiving care.

The Care Inspectorate has opened applications for the fourth cohort of its Care Home Improvement Programme (CHIP), with 16 adult and older people’s care homes being offered places.

Running from November 2026 until March 2027, the programme will support participating homes to undertake their own improvement project focused on an area where they want to make a positive difference within their service.

Each care home will nominate two members of staff to participate, and importantly, those employees can come from any role within the home. Participants will be allocated their own improvement adviser, who will provide dedicated support while they develop and deliver their project.

The programme is intended to build the confidence and capability of people working within care homes so that they can identify opportunities for improvement and turn ideas into measurable changes for the people they support.

Participants will learn how to use the Care Inspectorate’s self-evaluation tools, guidance and participation approaches alongside established quality improvement methods and tools. Developing leadership skills and approaches will also form part of the programme.

The programme combines face-to-face learning in Dumfries with shorter online sessions, beginning with an in-person event on 19 November covering self-evaluation, participation and developing improvement aims.

Further sessions will explore leadership, Plan Do Study Act methodology, measurement, implementation and how successful improvements can be spread more widely within a service.

Participants will return to Dumfries for a final celebration event on 18 March 2027, giving those involved an opportunity to reflect on their projects and what they have achieved during the programme.

Optional online ‘reflect and review’ sessions will also run between January and March, allowing staff from participating homes to discuss their progress, learn from one another and access peer support.

Alongside the group learning, each home will receive one-to-one support from its allocated improvement adviser while undertaking its project.

The Care Inspectorate says the overall aim is to empower care home staff to increase their quality improvement capacity and capability, ultimately improving outcomes for people experiencing care.

For providers considering applying but wanting to understand more about what participation involves, two online information sessions are being held before the application deadline.

The first will take place on Monday 21 September from 2pm to 3pm, followed by a second session on Wednesday 30 September from 10am to 11am. Providers will be able to meet the programme team, hear more about how CHIP works and ask questions before deciding whether to apply.

Applications are open to adult and older people’s care homes in Dumfries and Galloway and the Scottish Borders, with only one application permitted per care home.

The deadline for applications is Thursday 8 October 2026.

If applications exceed the 16 available places, the Care Inspectorate says it may need to shortlist homes before allocating places.

For care homes selected to participate, the programme offers something beyond conventional training. Staff will be able to take a real issue or opportunity within their own service and work on improving it over several months, supported by an adviser and colleagues from other care homes facing their own challenges.

That means the learning has the potential to move directly from an online session or training room into everyday care, whether the improvement a home chooses to pursue relates to the experience of residents, staff practice, participation or another area where it believes change could make a positive difference.

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