CONWY County Borough Council has been revealed as the best-paying authority in North Wales when it comes to paying care home fees amid the coronavirus crisis.

They pay out £636 per person per week and are also the only North Wales-based council to pay above the Welsh average weekly fee.

Such figures have been revealed thanks to 'The Cheapskate Awards' launched by Care Forum Wales.

They say the biggest difference between the highest and lowest weekly fee per person is more than £12,000 a year – equivalent to nearly £500,000 in a care home with 40 residents over a 12 month period.

The “league table of shame” was revealed by the organisation which represents more than 450 social care providers in Wales and they are writing to all the members of the Senedd to point out the unfairness of the system.

According to Care Forum Wales chair Mario Kreft MBE, the huge gulf between the top and the bottom payers was evidence of an unfair post code lottery which was threatening the well-being of the nation’s most vulnerable people and the future of social care in Wales.

Care Forum Wales say the root of the problem is that for more than 20 years the social care sector has been managed and funded separately by the 22 local councils and the seven health boards in Wales which was a recipe for disaster.

They are calling for an urgent national action plan to sort out the mess and ensure fair funding for social care across Wales.

Currently bottom of the heap in terms of funding is Powys County Council who increased the weekly fee for a person in a residential EMI care home for older people with mental frailty by 2.2 per cent to £559.

Denbighshire (£609) ranked sixth worst in the overall table for Wales, behind only Flintshire (£607) in North Wales.

A spokesperson for Conwy County Council said: "We work closely with the Care Homes to provide quality care to the residents of Conwy, we value this sector and they have had the full support of Elected Members through increasing fees year-on-year.

"Throughout this pandemic, we recognise how much the Care Homes and their staff have worked tirelessly to continue to keep residents as safe as possible.

"We have ensured that care homes have had access to the Welsh Government’s £40 Million Hardship Fund, we have done this by paying an extra amount per bed space (resident) per week. Care Homes can also request funding for specific pressures that they are experiencing as a result of Covid-19. So far, over £553k has been allocated through this fund and we expect to make further payments for as long as the grant support continues."

The Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care, Louise Emery has stated "As a Council, we care for our most vulnerable residents through working closely with Care Homes. We have welcomed the additional funding to support the Care Homes through this difficult time but our fee levels rely on annual Welsh Government funding and we need to ensure that the future funding for our Care Homes can sustain the market to continue to provide the quality of care we expect for our residents."