St Margaret’s Care Home on former school site opens

HEALTH Secretary Alex Neil has opened a new city care home which has been converted from a school building.

St Margaret’s Care Home, on the site of the former St Margaret’s Independent Girls School in Newington, has been fully refurbished by Four Seasons Healthcare.

The facility will provide much-needed beds in the Capital, with a shortage of supported living accommodation blamed on spiralling levels of bed blocking in city hospitals.

Mr Neil said: “The Scottish Government is committed to continuing to improve care for the elderly and through robust regulation by the Care Inspectorate we are already driving up the standards in our care homes. With its modern facilities St Margaret’s can provide a caring and homely setting for older people where they are treated with dignity and respect and get the support they need.”

The school ran for a century before it closed in 1990. The new home offers specialist care for people with dementia. Temporary and permanent accommodation is on offer.