Council to close six care homes

A report to be discussed by Leeds councillors next week recommends that two homes, Springs Gardens at Otley and Knowle Manor at Morley, should close, but only when new private residential care homes can be built in the towns.

Residents in both towns campaigned for the homes to remain open and some view the decision to keep them open for the time being as a “sugar-coated pill”.

The first homes to close are likely to be Westholme in Wortley, Kirkland House in Yea don and Grange Court, Garforth.

Dolphin Manor in Rothwell could remain open if it is transferred to a community interest company, but this is dependent on a business case passing council scrutiny.

If the figures do not add up, it will close when a new private sector alternative is built in the area.

Day centres at Spring Gardens, Firthlands, Garforth, Rose Farm in Rothwell and Lincolnfields in Burmantofts will also shut.

A handful of protesters gathered outside Leeds Civic Hall yesterday as councillors and officers spoke to journalists about the proposals.

Protester Elaine Stevens, whose mother is a resident at Spring Gardens, was happy that the home would remain open for now but she fears it will not remain open for long.

The council said it could no longer afford to run the homes and the future of the remaining eight council-owned residential homes would be decided by a further review.

Coun Lucinda Yeadon, executive board member with responsibility for adult health and social care said: “This has been a really difficult process, and I fully accept that our customers have found some of our proposals upsetting.

“However, with reducing resources and more older people to take care of, we simply cannot continue to do things exactly the same way that they have always been done for any longer.”

A council spokesman added: “Council-owned residential and day care units have high running and maintenance costs, and the capital funding needed to upgrade those requiring modernisation is not available.”

The council says Leeds differs from other councils because of its large number of council-run homes. Sheffield and Manchester run just one each, Liverpool and Newcastle four each.

Leeds has a strong independent sector that continues to develop new homes with better specifications and high standards of care and accommodation, according to the council.

It says the number of beds in Leeds outweighs current demand so it “makes sense to take out old, out-dated facilities”.

Critics fear privatisation and poorer standards of care in future.

Lib Dem MP Greg Mulholland said the plans would make families and residents extremely anxious. “We must remember that these are the residents’ homes that they are being forced to move from, homes that they and their families have chosen to live in.”

He said it was “some consolation” that Spring Gardens would remain open until a new facility could be built in Otley.

“The recommendations were not such good news for many other homes across the city, including Kirkland House, Westholme and Grange Court, which have been recommended for de-commissioning.

“The loss of these care homes will be a huge loss to their local communities.”