A decision is set to be made on major changes to council-run care homes for the elderly in Rhondda Cynon Taf. The council's cabinet will meet on Tuesday, February 28, to consider proposals to close three care homes and create extra care facilities, and dementia beds and accommodation, along with care for adults with learning disabilities in their place.
Five current council care homes for the elderly will remain open under the proposals. Cabinet will consider feedback from the consultation into the plans, which include closing Ystrad Fechan care home in Treorchy and working with Linc Cymru and the health board on developing land near it into accommodation with care facilities, including 40 extra care apartments and 20 residential dementia care beds. The report said that, following a previous cabinet decision, Ystrad Fechan was currently temporarily closed and had no residents living there.
On this proposal, 53.1% of respondents agreed, with 25.7% against. Another proposal is to develop land near the existing Ferndale House care home to provide new accommodation with care facilities, including 25 extra care apartments and 15 residential dementia care beds, and close Ferndale House residential care home when the new proposed alternative accommodation with care for older people is developed.
This would be a change to the preferred option consulted on, which included 20 extra care apartments and 10 residential dementia care beds. Of the consultation responses, 46% agreed with the plan and 29.5% disagreed.
The council is also looking at working with Linc Cymru to explore options to develop land near the existing Troedyrhiw care home in Mountain Ash, to provide new accommodation with care facilities including 25 extra care apartments and 15 residential dementia care beds and close the Troedyrhiw care home when the new proposed alternative accommodation with care for older people provision is developed. In the consultation, 46.5% of respondents agreed with this and 30% disagreed with the option
Garth Olwg care home in Church Village would be replaced by alternative accommodation with care facilities to support adults with learning disabilities and then closed when suitable alternative placements were found for existing residents in a home of their choice which met their needs. In response to this option, 50.5% of those who responded disagreed with the preferred option whereas 34.8% of respondents agreed with the report. The overwhelming message from older people and their families was that they wanted Garth Olwg care home to remain open.
The five homes which would be kept include Clydach Court in Trealaw, Pentre House in Pentre, Tegfan in Trecynon, Cae Glas in Hawthorn and Parc Newydd in Talbot Green. With regard to keeping these five homes open, 69.4% of those who responded to the consultation agreed and 21.9% disagreed.
The report said: “Officers consider that doing nothing is not a viable option. "Without continuing to explore the potential for redesigning the way in which adult care is provided, it will not be possible to meet people’s changing expectations and increasing demand within the resources available.”
It said it was “imperative” that the council “continues to reduce reliance on traditional services such as residential care homes and
moves to a model that is sustainable for the future, and effectively meets the needs of an ageing population with more complex needs, whilst focusing on preventative services, which promote choice, independence and wellbeing.” It added that the council’s residential care homes were “clearly highly significant for the people who live in them” and that there is “mixed” support for cabinet’s preferred options for the future of the council’s residential care homes and to retain a level of residential care home provision.
It added: “The overwhelming message from older people and their families can be simply summarised as wanting all council residential care homes to remain open. However, it has been possible to respond to all concerns raised during the consultation and put forward by way of appropriate mitigation.” The report said officers considered that the recommendations put forward in the report “alongside the ongoing successful delivery of the council’s extra care strategy, would lead to the development of a more sustainable model of residential services, providing the best possible care and support.”
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