Care homes ‘should be saved’

Two council-run care homes should be saved for the region, a local politician has said.

A consultation on the future of Parkdale in Auchterarder and Beechgrove in Perth was launched last September.

Yesterday SNP MSP Roseanna Cunningham urged the council to handle the decision with “compassion and understanding” and urged local councillors not to close or privatise the homes.

She said: “It is very clear that these homes are valued extremely highly by the residents, their families and by the wider communities in which they are situated.

“One of the main arguments that has been put forward for changing the nature of provision of these services is that there is a persistent level of under-occupation at the homes, but that is a claim that does not square with the experience of my constituents who have tried to get places for relatives in these homes.

“Nor, crucially, does it square with the potential future demographic changes within Perth and Kinross.

“We are a growing population and an ageing population and we need to ensure that facilities that will be needed in the future are not abandoned now.

“As the end of the consultation approaches, I urge all those involved in the process to bear these important factors in mind and ensure that a decision is reached that reflects these concerns.”