We want the best quality of life for our residents and older people have expectations about maintaining the living standards they are used to. We want today’s older residents and future generations to have access to a modern living environment as well as good quality care.
In the light of rising customer expectations and new specialist accommodation for older people being built, we have been reviewing our own accommodation. As replacement care home capacity has become available, we have been decommissioning the remaining council-owned care homes which were constructed in the 1960s and 70s, as the buildings are approaching the end of their economic life and do not meet customer expectations or modern standards.
For example, lacking ensuite bathroom facilities, the importance of which was highlighted during the pandemic in terms of both infection control and dignity. So, for a number of years when better options have become available elsewhere, we have consulted with those affected, including people we support and their relatives, about the future.
Allison House is a residential care home for older people located in Swan Lane, Sandy. It is a Council-owned residential home providing care for 42 people and is the last of the original council care homes requiring reprovision.
Having reviewed options for the future of Allison House, our current preferred option is to invest £18.5 million in building a brand-new, modern, fit-for-purpose care home on the former Sandye Place Academy site. We would then close Allison House.
People living at Allison House would have a choice about which home they would like to move to, but we would expect most residents would choose to move to the new location of Allison House. Previous experience has shown that some people may make other choices such as moving to a care home closer to their relatives. If a new home cannot be provided, Allison House will remain open until a viable alternative option is found in and around Sandy.
Although there is not currently an undersupply of care home places in the area (Ivel Valley), it is forecast that demand will start to exceed supply this year. Building a new care home on the Sandye Place Academy site offers the opportunity to build a bigger care home that will help to meet future demand. You can read about the other options that have been considered in the appendix.
The earliest implementation date would be 2027, and the proposal would be for the new care home to be run by our established care provider, Care is Central.
At this point, no decisions have been made about what would happen to the Allison House site should it close.