Care homes set to close
THE care homes which the council is to close have been revealed.
The council is planning to close four of its elderly homes, with the remaining seven to remain open.
A review of the council’s residential care and day services for the elderly had suggested closing all 11 of its homes.
THE care homes in Rhondda Cynon Taff which the council wants to close have now been revealed.
The council is planning to close four of its elderly care homes under its proposals, with the remaining seven set to stay open.
The four homes which would close are Bronllwyn Residential Care Home in Gelli, Ystradfechan Residential Care Home in Treorchy, Dan y Mynydd Residential Care Home in Porth, and Garth Olwg Residential Care Home in Church Village.
An independent review of the council’s residential care and day services for the elderly suggested a phased closure of all 11 of the council-run elderly care homes and all of its elderly day services.
But the council has always stressed that it wants to keep a presence in the local care home market to provide specialist and complex care and to avoid complete exposure to the independent care home sector.
The council is currently building five extra care schemes across the county borough, with £50m going in to create 300 places across RCT where residents can receive specialist care in a residential setting.
The former Maesyffynnon Residential Care Home site in Aberaman and the former Pontypridd Magistrates’ Court site in Graig are already being built upon.
Cabinet will consider the feedback from a 12week public consultation which took place earlier this year and from the council’s overview and scrutiny committee.
There is also a proposed new model of day services for older people which would focus on the extra care developments and the council’s new community hubs.
The seven council homes which would remain open are:
■ Clydach Court Residential Care Home in Trealaw;
■ Ferndale House Residential Care Home in Ferndale;
■ Pentre House Residential Care Home in Pentre;
■ Tegfan Residential Care Home in Trecynon;
■ Troedyrhiw Residential Care Home in Mountain Ash;
■ Cae Glas Residential Care Home in Hawthorn;
■ Parc Newydd Residential Care Home in Talbot Green.
But campaigners are urging Rhondda Cynon Taf Council not to “jump the gun” by going ahead with proposed closures of some residential care homes and day centres.
Save Care Homes And Centres (SCHAC), the campaign against residential care and day centre closures in RCT, has laid out a seven-point criticism of the proposals, which they say shows, despite the council’s own evidence of expected increased demand from an ageing population, the authority is squeezing the figures down in order to justify saving money.
SCHAC argues that RCT and all councils in Wales should now protect their care infrastructure for the future until the Welsh Government produces, in early 2020, an adult social care policy for the whole of Wales.
Len Arthur, spokesman for the campaign, said: “RCT along with other councils in Wales are under financial pressure to make savings in adult social care.
“We call on RCT and all the Welsh councils to not jump the gun by continuing to make piecemeal cuts in needed care infrastructure whilst a significant policy development is at hand.
“We call upon the Welsh Government to act to bring into effect an immediate all-Wales moratorium on adult social care closures and cutbacks.”
Councillor Geraint Hopkins, RCT’s cabinet member for adult community services, said: “Key to the proposals is delivering better care facilities for a new generation of older people. We want to ensure we continue to provide the very best level of care and support by taking proactive steps now to respond to future needs.
“Older people in Rhondda Cynon Taff are already choosing to access care in the independent sector and proposals being presented by officers next week to cabinet seek to improve the offer available to them.
“The consultation evidences clear support for the council to focus upon providing an improved range of services for those residents with more complex needs and ensures it continues to play a leading role in the delivery of residential care in this county borough.
“While these proposals do include plans to decommission some care homes, it is proposed the council retains a significant number of local authority-led homes – and with this there is the opportunity for larger extra care facilities to be managed by the local authority’s experienced and valued workforce.
“The recommendations to be considered by cabinet seek to provide residents with more choice in the future, across an improved range of options and specialisms, while also creating greater stability in the wider care sector.
“Importantly, officers consider that the proposals have the potential to maximise the opportunity for older generations to live independently for as long as possible into the future.
“The report makes clear that it is not possible for the council to respond to future challenges or meet the needs and expectations of future older generations within our current residential arrangements.
“The shift in delivery of residential care would be supported by significant investment by the council.
“Alongside the consultation, the council’s overview and scrutiny committee has played an important role at key milestones in scrutinising the process undertaken by the council and the outcomes of the public consultation.”