VULNERABLE people in care homes in Wales are being placed at risk due to the number of staff having to self-isolate, it has been claimed.

Keri Llewellyn, the vice chairwoman of Care Forum Wales, said they had received reports of some care homes having 40 per cent of staff at home quarantining.

As a result, a growing number of providers were struggling to give the required level of care  – and Ms Llewellyn warned the situation was only going to get worse with covid cases on the rise.

She added that as social service departments were being affected by the same problem, this meant there were no reinforcements from there available for care homes of social care providers.

“We can’t carry on providing the same service to everyone in the community while we’ve got that many staff off,” Ms Llewellyn said.

“They can’t get people out of hospital clearly, so there’s already a backlog to free up hospitals because they can’t move them on to having care because nobody has the capacity.

“We’re facing a perfect storm. As well as the increasing number of people self-isolating.”

The Welsh Government has announced that from August 7, fully-vaccinated people will not need to self-isolate if they come in close contact with someone who has tested positive.

Care Forum Wales say they are looking forward to discussing with the Welsh Government what this means for social care and any additional measures for staff working in health and care settings.

Care Forum Wales chief executive Mary Wimbury said: “The vast majority of social care staff are fully vaccinated, as are the people receiving care.

“We will be discussing with the Welsh Government the arrangements they have suggested will need to be in place for those in the care sector who would previously have been required to self-isolate after being in contact with somebody who has Covid.

“Caution should still be the watchword in Wales but we have also got to be in a position where we can deliver services.

“We are very concerned providers we are going to reach a point where vulnerable people are at risk because there are not enough staff to care for them.”

A Welsh Government spokesman said: "[On Wednesday] the first minister outlined the cautious easing of coronavirus restrictions and our intention to remove the requirement for people who are fully vaccinated to self-isolate if they are a close contact of someone who has tested positive.

"We will discuss with partners additional safeguards for people working in health and social care settings and with vulnerable people.

"We have a lot of work to do before these changes can be made.

“In the meantime the existing rules apply. If you have symptoms of coronavirus, test positive, or are identified as a contact who has tested positive, you will need to self-isolate whether you have been fully vaccinated or not.”