Leicester City Council to close or sell off elderly people's homes due to low resident numbers

Leicester City Council has announced its plans to close or sell eight of its elderly people’s homes which house low numbers of residents.

It proposes to close three homes – Herrick Lodge, Elizabeth House and Nuffield House – this year before selling Abbey House and Cooper House next year.

Depending on the outcome of the work, the council may then decide to sell Thurn Court and Arbor House to external providers in 2015. The council will also consider closing Preston Lodge, which has just 16 residents in 2015.

The proposals follow an announcement in February last year when the council said changes needed to be made to the way its care homes were provided and managed as a result of low resident numbers and an increasing demand for home-based care.

Councillor Rita Patel, assistant mayor, said: “As people are remaining in their own homes with care and support for longer, we’ve seen a decrease in the number of residents moving into our elderly people’s homes over a number of years.

“When people do need to go into residential care, they often also need nursing care, which the council cannot provide by law.

“We have accommodation available for 282 people in these homes, but currently only have 161 residents. The limited interest from independent providers in taking on these homes means we’ve had to look at making tough decisions over their future.

“It is also important to remember that people who are funded by the council to live in residential care have a choice about where they want to live – currently 80 per cent of those funded by the council choose to live in homes run by the independent sector rather than the council’s homes.

“We are committed to working with all residents and their families to ensure the transition is as easy as possible and to help find new accommodation for residents of the homes proposed for closure.”

Earlier this year Leicester City Council contributed £750,000 towards the development of Abbey Mills, an extra care facility where residents can live independently with care and support readily available.

It is also developing proposals for a new 60-bed facility to provide intermediate care for elderly people.