UK CARE OPERATIONS TOOL

Care home laundry cost: in-house vs outsourced

Model your own laundry workload, compare a real supplier rate and turn the decision into an infection-control-aware scope.

MAKE-OR-BUY WORKSHEET

Compare the operating model, then ask suppliers the right questions.

The supplier rate is deliberately editable: UK care-home contracts are quote-specific.

LAUNDRY VOLUME

2,189 kg

Planning volume per month. Change the kg assumption to match your own weighing records.

  • 40 beds at 90% planning occupancy
  • 2,189 kg of linen/clothing per month
  • 3 collection and return cycles per week
  • Supplier comparison rate: £2.10 per kg
  • In-house break-even supplier rate: £1.97 per kg

THREE-YEAR TCO

In-house£155,628.00
Outsourced£165,492.00

Outsourcing is £274.00 more per month in this scenario.

IPC HAND-OFF CHECKLIST

Cost alone is not a care-home laundry decision.

  • Keep clean and used linen physically separate throughout the workflow
  • Confirm dirty-linen collection, storage and return hand-off points
  • Ask how infectious linen, staff training and traceability are handled
  • Specify turnaround, resident clothing identification and lost-item process

Sources and limits

This model is an operating-cost comparison, not a clinical laundry protocol or a supplier quotation. UK care-home providers must ensure suitable linen handling; the actual system, infection-control policy, staffing and service agreement determine the right process.

Need help reviewing the scope?

Tell us what you need. Local provider coverage is still being built, so availability is not guaranteed.

USE THE RESULT

Plan care-sector laundry costs while separating resident volume, infection-control scope and service turnaround.

Sources reviewed: 2026-08-12 · Model version: 2026.08.1

Formula and meaning

Resident and linen volume + processing scope + collection and turnaround conditions

What it means: The tool describes a budgeting scenario and does not certify infection-control or care-provider compliance.

A care-home service with labelled personal laundry and short turnaround has a different labour and logistics scope from bulk flatwork.

Key concepts

Personal laundry
Resident-specific garments or items that may require identification and separate handling.
Service turnaround
The timeframe and logistics agreed for returning processed linen or garments.

Information to confirm

  • Resident volume and item mix
  • Infection-control procedures and labelling needs
  • Collection, loss, damage and contingency terms

ANSWER & SCOPE

What this tool calculates

This tool compares UK care-home laundry operating cost in-house versus outsourced over three years, with an infection-control hand-off scope and editable supplier quote.

Use it when a UK care-home operator needs a make-or-buy laundry decision with infection-control hand-off context.

Includes

  • Resident volume and linen inputs
  • In-house operating-cost model
  • Editable supplier quote comparison
  • Infection-control hand-off checklist

Does not include

  • Infection-control certification
  • Healthcare laundry assurance schemes
  • Clinical linen decontamination
  • A binding supplier quotation

Linen processing in social care has official guidance

UKHSA information on linen processing within adult social care frames the infection-control context the comparator keeps explicit in its hand-off checklist.

UKHSA — linen processing in social care

NHS guidance covers social-care linen

NHS England HTM 01-04 social-care linen guidance describes the processing context; the tool uses it as scope context, not as a processing certification.

NHS England — HTM 01-04 social-care linen

Sources reviewed: · WorkResolved methodology · About and corrections