Holyrood told of 93-year-old’s care home plight

Family speaks out about forced move as Scottish Labour leader demands answers over ‘failing’ policies

The family of a 93-year-old woman from Fife has spoken of her anguish at being “evicted” from her home of more than two decades.

Nancy Sutherland “gets no respite from the fear” of being forced out of the Bield home in Dunfermline she has lived in for 23 years.

Her plight was raised by Scottish Labour leader Richard Leonard at First Minister’s Questions, who demanded Nicola Sturgeon take action for a sector “on the brink of collapse”.

A quarter of the 12 Bield care homes closing across the country are in Dunfermline and Glenrothes, at a loss of up to 50 places and 55 jobs in Fife by the summer.

Daughter Nancy Sutherland-Brown said her mother was asking her daily about where and when she is going and if she will know anyone in her new home – questions she cannot answer.

“The upheaval at that age and the not knowing I think is one of the major things. It’s just horrendous, frankly,” Ms Sutherland-Brown said.

A Fife resident of 75 years, Mrs Sutherland lived together with her husband Jackie in the Bield complex before he died in 2001.

“The staff still remember dad and she goes along to her lunch with all her ladies,” the daughter said.

“They’ll be scattered to God knows where. And the chances of her knowing anyone when she moves to a new facility I think are fairly remote.

“We have visited at least five care homes in the area, none of which have any vacancies and are unable to tell us when they’re likely to have.”

She added: “Our concern is that, come July when they turn off the lights, mum will be moved into an interim facility until somewhere becomes available, which would constitute two moves, which doesn’t bear thinking about to be honest with you.”

The Save Our Bield campaign said it is “nothing short of cruel and callous” to expect former book-keeper Mrs Sutherland to “start over elsewhere”.

A spokeswoman for the campaign said: “She gets no respite from the fear she feels about moving to a new place with new neighbours and new staff.”

Mr Leonard said the Bield case, which will see 167 vulnerable people “evicted” from their homes, forms part of a “growing crisis in care provision” in Scotland.

“The First Minister’s care policies are failing,” he said.

“Surely she must see that the time has come for her Government to stop the cuts to lifeline services, or will she continue to fail people like Mrs Sutherland?”

Ms Sturgeon replied: “It is exactly because we realise how unsettling, indeed how traumatic, this decision has been and will be for residents, their families and employees that the Scottish Government will continue to work to ensure we can do everything we can to guarantee continuity of care for these residents and make sure there is no compromise whatsoever in the quality of their care.”

Bield has said the decision to close the facilities in October was made with “considerable regret” and followed “many attempts” to make the operation financially viable, while “maintaining our high standards”.

She gets no respite from the fear she feels about moving to a new place

Uncertain future: Nancy Sutherland.