Grantown care home set for £780k refurbishment

LOCAL Highland councillors have welcomed plans for a £780,000 refurbishment of the Grant House residential care home in Grantown.

Members of the council’s housing and social work committee are being recommended to approve the upgrade when they meet in Inverness today (Wednesday).

However, officials are advising that plans to add a single-storey extension and enlarge bedrooms and en-suite facilities at the home are put on the back burner.

They blame the decision on the higher cost, the loss of bedrooms and the disruption it would cause, as residents would have to be moved out while work took place.

The improvements are proposed to take place some time over the next five years at the council home, which until recently had a question-mark hanging over its future.

Highland councillor Jaci Douglas (Independent), who lives in Grantown, said: “The refurbishment is excellent news – it secures the same number of beds at Grant House for the longer term. It also emphasises the council’s commitment to improving and investing in it to continue the delivery of services and care in Grantown and beyond.

“This is what I and the three other local Highland councillors have been working towards, and what local people have told us they want.

“Hopefully it will be agreed at committee and work can start as soon as possible to reassure residents, staff and families after what has been an uncertain and unsettling time.”

Ms Douglas added: “I will be asking at the meeting for a timescale for the work as well as information on any potential risks of not going on with the larger-scale development to increase space which may eventually be required by the Care Commission or any other future regulating body.”

Fellow local councillor Dave Fallows (SNP) said that the plan was “good news”.

“Assuming that the administration’s proposals on Grant House are approved, this should put an end to the bogey that has hung over the residents’ future,” he said.

“While those with an interest in Ach an Eas in Inverness will also be pleased with the recommendations, a question mark still hangs over Invernevis (Fort William). It is a great shame that residents there could not have their minds put at rest in the same way as our own folk in Grantown.

“We are now looking very much at the status quo, which also means a continuing residential role for the Wade Centre in Kingussie.”

The full refurbishment will consist of:

    * Replacing some en-suite baths with showers;
    * Kitchen improvements;
    * Further improvements to heating;
    * Hot and cold water installations;
    * More power and lighting installations;
    * Further improvements to floor finishes.

The latest proposed improvements come after councillors agreed £210,000 for an immediate refurbishment of Grant House, which is registered for 20 beds.

The schedule given the go-ahead was for external works; improvements to doors and internal fabric, lighting and heating, and floor finishes; and upgrades to the assisted bathroom, shower room and public toilets.

The report going before councillors states: “Grant House has benefited from some capital investment and refurbishment, and is in a good state of repair. It has en-suite facilities, but the bedrooms and en-suites do not meet space standards.”

Three options had been considered for the future development of the building, and they have not been ruled out in the longer term, as officials warn that the Care Commission may require more work to be carried out.

A minimum development of Grant House would have seen the number of rooms that meet the space standard for existing care homes (10.25 square metres) increased from 11 to 14, and baths replaced by showers where feasible.

But the plan would have cost a further £250,000, the number of registered places would have fallen to 16, and there would have been a further £141,000 each year in running costs.

Considered at the top end of the scale was a £1.5 mill-on major development for 18 people which would have involved a single-storey extension with all bedrooms meeting the new guidelines on room space (12.5 square metres).

Mr Bill Alexander, the council’s director of social services, stated: “While this work would achieve larger bedrooms and improved en-suite facilities, it is not recommended because of the reduced capacity, disruption to residents and additional cost.

“However, there is a risk that the regulating body may at a future date require further improvements to be made for individual residents.”

Councillors are also being recommended to approve a £1.064 million full refurbishment of Ach an Eas – home to 24 beds – over the next five years, and to carry out further work on the Burnside care home in Inverness.