The New Fair Cost of Care Tool for Supported Living: What Providers Need to Know in 2026

With Supported Living services under unprecedented financial and operational pressure, the new Fair Cost of Care tool developed by the More Than a Provider coalition has arrived at exactly the moment commissioners and providers need a clearer national benchmark.

Download the 2025/26 Supported Living Costing Tool (Excel):
📁 Download the Supported Living Costing Tool →

To ensure you're using the most up-to-date version, you can check PPL’s official “Cost of Care” page:
https://ppl.org.uk/cost-of-care-for-supported-living/.

This article explains what the tool is, why it matters, how councils are likely to use it — and how providers can align strategically as the major 2026–2027 re-procurement wave approaches.

Why Supported Living needed a costing model

Unlike older people’s residential care, there has never been a recognised national fee model for Supported Living. Prices vary widely between areas, different commissioners use different assumptions, and “value” has often been defined inconsistently. The result? A market where:

• providers struggle to evidence real costs,
• commissioners lack a shared benchmark,
• negotiations can feel subjective rather than transparent,
• and high-needs individuals often sit in expensive placement types simply due to unclear costing structures.

The new tool aims to bring consistency through a nationally usable framework that reflects the real costs of high-quality Supported Living.

What the Fair Cost of Care tool includes

The model provides a structured, transparent way of calculating Supported Living costs. It includes:

• Wage costs (aligned with local labour markets)
• Pensions, NI and on-costs
• Training and supervision
• Overheads strong> (registered office, compliance, governance)
• Travel and mileage
• Complexity uplifts based on need, risk and behaviours
• Local recruitment factors affecting deliverability

It is not designed as a flat national “price” — but rather a national methodology local commissioners can apply consistently.

Why this matters in 2026

2026 will be a defining year for Supported Living commissioning. Several forces are converging:

• Major LD and autism frameworks are reopening after long COVID-era extensions.
• The Procurement Act 2023 requires clearer transparency and objective evaluation.
• Learning disability services now represent the largest share of ASC spend nationally.
• Commissioners are under pressure to demonstrate that fees reflect evidence, not guesswork.

The Fair Cost of Care tool helps commissioners meet these expectations while giving providers a clearer basis for financial discussions.

How commissioners may use the tool

While each council will adapt it differently, you can expect the tool to be used in at least four ways during 2026:

1. Fee Benchmarking — comparing local Supported Living fees with national evidence-based ranges.
2. Negotiating individual packages — particularly high-cost or 2:1/3:1 support packages.
3. Tender pricing guidance — providing parameters, assumptions or indicative rates.
4. Market shaping & sufficiency planning — identifying gaps where costs are misaligned with need.

Providers who understand the tool will be better positioned to explain, justify and negotiate their hourly rates.

How providers can respond strategically

1. Understand the assumptions behind the tool

Councils will increasingly expect providers to reference similar building blocks:

• safe staffing levels,
• realistic on-costs,
• evidence-based training requirements,
• PBS and complex needs capacity,
• governance and regulatory compliance time.

If your internal model doesn’t mirror these factors, commissioners may challenge your pricing more than in previous years.

2. Strengthen your complexity framework

The tool emphasises transparent complexity uplifts. Providers should ensure they have:

• clear MDT evidence supporting 1:1 and 2:1 ratios,
• behavioural risk assessments,
• PBS plans linked to staffing needs,
• data showing how support reduces risk and crisis events.

This is vital for individuals with high acuity or forensic backgrounds.

3. Build a sharper narrative about value and outcomes

The tool gives a structure for costs — but your competitive edge comes from proving impact. Councils will look for:

• evidence of step-down from residential/inpatient provision,
• reduced staffing ratios over time,
• health gains and crisis prevention,
• stability of housing and tenancy sustainment,
• progress toward work, community roles and citizenship.

Outcome-rich providers will be in a stronger position regardless of baseline price.

4. Prepare for tenders to reference the tool directly

Several 2026 Supported Living tenders are likely to include:

• guidance based on the tool’s assumptions,
• pricing templates aligned with the model,
• requests for justification where your cost differs from benchmarks.

Providers should update:

• pricing templates,
• bid libraries,
• PBS case studies,
• workforce skill mix narratives.

What this means for the 2026–2027 re-tender wave

The Fair Cost of Care tool will shape — directly or indirectly — the biggest two-year Supported Living tender cycle in over a decade. High-spend LD and autism services are exactly where commissioners will expect strategic, evidence-led bids.

Providers who understand the tool will be better equipped to:

• defend sustainable fees,
• negotiate more confidently,
• present robust value-for-money narratives,
• show alignment with national best practice.

If you want to see which LD & Supported Living frameworks are reopening between 2026 and 2028, you can view the full national pipeline here:
👉 UK Social Care Tender Pipeline (2026–2028)

Practical next steps for providers

• Review your 2026 pricing model against the tool’s assumptions.
• Refresh bid libraries with new outcomes, evidence and PBS examples.
• Develop a clear “complexity uplift justification” framework.
• Strengthen your housing partnerships and pathways to independence.
• Audit your data story — commissioners are expecting more.

The organisations that thrive will be those that combine strong values with strong commercial clarity.

How Impact Guru can help

I support LD, autism and mental health providers to strengthen pricing, positioning and tender strategy across England — including how national costing tools, fee benchmarks and commissioning changes affect real-world bids.

If you'd like to sense-check your pricing, explore tender implications or discuss your commercial position, feel free to get in touch via WhatsApp — quick, informal and no obligation.

💬 Message me on WhatsApp

💼 Rapid Support Products (fast turnaround options)

• ⚡ 48-Hour Tender Triage
• 🆘 Bid Rescue Session – 60 minutes
• ✍️ Score Booster – Tender Answer Rewrite
• 🧩 Tender Answer Blueprint
• 📝 Proofreading & Light Editing
• 🔍 Pre-Tender Readiness Audit
• 📁 Document Pack Review