Campaigners have welcomed the news the axe has been lifted from an under-threat Angus care home.
A report to go before members of the Integration Joint Board (IJB) next week has revealed the option of fully closing Seaton Grove care home in Arbroath has been taken off the table. However, privatisation and partial closure are still being considered.
Four options remain for the site, including capital investment of £850,000 to bring it up to standard, reducing the size of the care home to reduce running costs, outsourcing or privatisation, and changing the use of one wing to a residential setting for people with long term mental health difficulties.
Ian Angus, chairman of the Friends of Seaton Grove campaign group, which battled to save the much-loved facility, warned they would continue to fight for “the best case scenario.”
He said: “Residents will be relieved the threat of full closure is set to be lifted in the immediate future, but for us concerns remain about some of the options still on the table, including privatisation, as the report itself highlights the variable quality of care available in the private sector.
“The Save Seaton Grove campaign, public outcry and media coverage has clearly had an impact on the board’s thinking, but we can’t afford to relax just yet, and will continue to press for the best case scenario for the residents, their families and the community.
“The fact is that the current financial plan for the IJB still has significant longer term shortfalls and is reliant on a saving of around half a million pounds from this review of Angus care home provision.
“I think that implications remain for the other two public care homes in Forfar and Carnoustie and this situation needs to be monitored closely.”
With Seaton Grove needing substantial investment to bring it up to standard, health chiefs looked at complete closure to balance the books, highlighting the disparity in costs between the public and private sectors.
Provision at Seaton Grove costs approximately £44,000 per annum, while the private sector currently charges around £30,000 per person.
In January, a bombshell report showed the Angus Health and Social Care Partnership, which includes Angus Council and NHS Tayside, faces a double hit of financial constraint and steadily increasing demand.
The news prompted a public outcry and a petition against mothballing the site attracted more than 4,000 signatures in a four-week period.
