Just prior to Christmas, the 17 elderly residents of Council Care Home, Coleridge House, many living with dementia, were served notice that they would have to leave by Xmas….or at best, early January. This is despite the fact that the Council is actively in the process of selling it off, as a going concern….with residents. That was the Council’s policy.

This was covered in detail in an earlier article :

“Cllr Repton ignores his own Care Home “triple lock” pledge as Council evicts elderly residents by Xmas for quick £0.5m sale”

The Council claims that the reason for the closure is due to lack of resources. Prior to Xmas, there were 17 residents and 45 staff. The Council is not short of care home staff….soon it will have a significant surplus.

13 of the residents have recently moved out, with many leaving today, described by one concerned family member as “like a conveyor belt”

Despite the policy to block any new residents in Council Care Homes, some of those who have been forced out of Coleridge House, have been moved to the 2 other homes in the process of being sold off – Raynesway View and Merrill House.

Comment

It is fairly evident that this policy is not giving any consideration or care to the elderly residents, or staff.  Officers are clearly using spurious excuses to achieve a commercial interest that views the residents as an inconvenience. The act of moving the people into the other Council Care homes, reinforces this….it has clearly been done as a temporary expedience, and not as a long term solution.

Cllr Martin Repton is the elected member, accountable for representing the interests of the people. He could have delayed this to a timescale which was more of a measured transfer, and not to create an artificial pressure consistent with a contrived evacuation.

He should be ashamed of himself.