B&NES Council is to spend £700,000 improving specialist care for the elderly across the area, taking decisive action to boost its investment in modern, fit-for-purpose care services to meet the changing needs of the older population.
The decision to further invest in older people’s care services prioritises some of the most vulnerable people in our community, despite a difficult financial climate.
Cllr Vic Pritchard (Conservative, Chew Valley South), Cabinet Member for Adult Social Care and Health said: “A growing number of older people are now being supported to live at home for longer. However, this means when they enter care homes, later in life, they often have more complex health needs.
“Approximately 130 care home beds have closed across Bath & North East Somerset over the past year, leading to gaps in the provision of nursing and dementia care.
“This investment will help plug that gap, providing modern fit-for-purpose care services while ensuring local people have access to affordable local care.”
The money will be spent on redesigning services at three Community Resource Centres in Bath, Midsomer Norton and Keynsham.
- Cleeve Court, in Bath, will become a specialist residential home for people living with dementia.
- Combe Lea, in Midsomer Norton, will also focus on caring for people with dementia, providing both nursing and residential care.
- Charlton House, in Keynsham, will provide general nursing care but will also focus on providing a higher level of residential care for people with complex needs but who do not require nursing.
The Council and its provider Sirona care & health will work alongside residents and families while these changes are implemented. All current residents’ places are secure and remain unaffected.
Jenny Theed, Sirona’s Director of Operations and Nursing, said: “This is great news for these services. We are delighted that the Council has agreed to invest in improving our Community Resource Centres to ensure we can continue to meet the ever increasing needs of our current and future residents.
“This will mean we can upgrade the buildings themselves and install some state of the art equipment and make the centres a much better place to live and work.”
The decision to spend the £700,000 is subject to Call In.