Security for empty Gloucester care facility could cost £520,000 a year
Summary
Concerns have been raised that a recently closed short-term care home could cost £520,000 a year to keep secure while empty. Shire Hall chiefs agreed last month to close Great Western Court Millbrook Street as it is deemed a surplus to requirements. The reablement unit, which previously provided short term residential care for people after leaving hospital, has been vacant since March.
Details
Council chiefs say its model no longer fits with authority or the health service’s needs. And it was revealed at yesterday’s (May 12) adult social care and communities it would cost £10,000 a week in 24 hour security. Councillor Rebecca Trimnell (LD, Hempsted and Westgate), who chairs the Gloucestershire County Council committee, said there was quite a “hefty” security price tag for the site.
She told the meeting it was “£10,000 a week which equated to about £520,000 a year for 24 hour surveillance of the property”. “I trust that is not coming out of adult social care budget,” she said. Officers confirmed these costs would not come out of the adult social care budget.
Councillor Sajid Patel (C, Barton and Tredworth) also asked about what the plans were for the Great Western Court site. He asked if the site is sold would it be reinvested back in new re-ablement. Adult social care executive director Sarah Scott explained beds at the short-term care facility had been commissioned by the NHS to support people coming out of hospital.
“The Great Western Court was registered with the Care Quality Commission to provide residential support rather than nursing care,” she said. “So normally, when we support people to come out of hospital, the ICB puts them in what we call nursing home beds so you can actually have nursing care there. “We couldn’t provide that at Great Western Court because we weren’t registered to provide nursing care.
“So we were slightly limited in the type of person that had the right care needs to go to Great Western Court.” She said beds were not occupied and the facility was becoming very expensive to use. And she explained the council could decide to use the building for something else or sell the site.