A report has confirmed that Ceredigion County Council wants to close Tregerddan care home in Bow Street with residents and staff moved to an Aberystwyth care home that was itself saved from closure.
As part of budget discussions at a full council meeting on 29 February, a report outlined plans to transfer the residents and staff of Cartref Tregerddan Residential Care Home, Bow Street into a section of Hafan y Waun Residential Care Home, Aberystwyth.
Now Cabinet members have been asked to sign off on a 12 week consultation on the move.
The plan was met with fury by the North Ceredigion Forum for Older People’s Care.
Mark Williams, Chair of the forum, and former MP for Ceredigion said: “We have been warning for some time that this closure was possible, and our warnings have been dismissed as ill-informed or scaremongering, but it was clear for some time that the council was not investing in the infrastructure of the home, and closure was a probability.
“While we are very relieved that the staff will be relocated to Hafan y Waun, the simple fact remains that an excellent residential care home, so ably and generously supported by the Friends of Tregerddan will close at a time when we need more places.”
Ceredigion council stepped into take on control of Hafan y Waun after operator Methodist Homes (MHA) announced last May that it was one of 10 homes across the UK that was closing following a review.
The acquisition of Hafan y Waun and subsequent running costs are estimated to set Ceredigion council back £1.1m.
A decision on the closure of Tregerddan is now set to made by Ceredigion County Council’s Cabinet on 19 March, with members asked to give the give go ahead for a statutory consultation .
A report to be put before members at the meeting outlines there are currently 20 residents at the Bow Street home with 50 at Hafan y Waun.
The Bow Street residents would be housed in one of the two currently unused wings of the Aberystwyth home if the move gets the green light, the report said.
The report says: “There is an opportunity to bring forward the re-structuring of residential care provision across the Aberystwyth area, merging Tregerddan and Hafan y Waun.
“Not only will this help to address the ageing estate, that in many cases is unfit for purpose and requires significant capital investment to upgrade it to the required standard, but also provides opportunity for improved facilities (such as en-suite bedrooms), better access for families due to restrictive parking at Cartref Tregerddan and poor access at the home for emergency vehicles.
“There are also general economies of scale in terms of staffing support and service access.”
Under the plan, the report says, “staff will transfer with the residents from Cartref Tregerddan to Hafan y Waun; providing continuity of care.”
“This supports the ongoing wellbeing of the residents, families, and the staff themselves, throughout the process,” the report adds.