Care Group Reports Transformational Year But Warns Of Sector Pressures Ahead
A long-established family-run care provider founded in Saltaire in 1983, has reported a year of significant expansion and investment across its portfolio of care homes and retirement developments.
Czajka Care Group now provides quality care for more than 150 elderly and disabled people, at Brookfield Care Home and Staveley Birkleas Nursing Home in Nab Wood near Shipley and Currergate Nursing Home in Steeton. It also owns and manages two popular purpose-built retirement developments at Currergate Mews in Steeton and Fairmount Park in Nab Wood, Saltaire, as well as The Clubhouse leisure facility in Nab Wood.
Managing director, Konrad Czajka, who is also the Chair of the Bradford Care Association said: “2025 has marked major progress in our fit for the future strategy. At Currergate Nursing Home, a substantial capital programme delivered a new extension featuring new ensuite wet rooms, together with a new orangery, increasing the home’s capacity to 47 beds. Brookfield Care Home underwent a parallel expansion, adding several ensuite bedrooms to create a 45-bed home.”
Both homes benefited from further investment in modernisation, including extensive new flooring, redecoration, and the replacement or upgrading of fire doors. Retirement living also saw sustained growth at Czajka Care Group, with a new phase of eight houses and apartments completed at Fairmount Park.
The Nab Wood development now comprises 45 fully occupied retirement properties, reflecting strong and continued demand for quality retirement living in West Yorkshire. At Currergate Mews, 13 of the 14 desirable retirement homes are all occupied, with just one currently available for either rent, or to buy via shared equity or full equity.
Czajka Care Group’s three care and nursing homes are currently operating at over 90% occupancy, with only a small number of places now available across the portfolio. Konrad added: “This investment and growth evidence our long-term commitment to future proofing our family run business and we are delighted to have maintained our Gold Standard Framework accreditation and membership in Investors in People award in 2025 too.”
However, Czajka Care Group is predicting that 2026 presents substantial challenges for the wider care sector. Konrad added: “The £500 million allocated by the Government to social care for the fair pay agreement will not even touch the sides. The Homecare Association has estimated that increasing home carers’ pay to £15 an hour would require an additional £2.6 billion. Alongside this, the Employment Rights Bill, which is introducing major changes to unfair dismissal, zero-hour contracts and statutory sick pay, come into effect from April 2026.
“Whilst Local Authorities increased adult social care fees by between 4.9% and 6% in 2025, they remain under acute financial pressure. Ideally the Government should end the VAT anomaly whereby social care providers are not able to charge VAT, unlike the NHS, which means they cannot reclaim VAT on their inputs, leaving them with unrecoverable costs.
“It would then allow social care providers to reclaim VAT, as the NHS does, and eliminate this structural disadvantage and reduce net expenditure, as well as allowing them to unlock vital capital for investment in technology, facilities and training.
“There are also several concerns around regulatory consistency. The Care Quality Commission must strengthen the reliability of inspections, assessments and ratings. We have contributed to the consultation on the new approach planned for 2026, and we hope it will deliver meaningful improvement.”
