Councillors Call for Reconsideration of Closure Proposals for Two Care Homes in Rhondda Cynon Taf

Proposals to close two care homes in Rhondda Cynon Taf (RCT) have been called in by councillors.
The council’s cabinet has agreed to consult on proposals to close Ferndale House care home in Ferndale and Cae Glas care home in Hawthorn and to create a new specialist dementia care facility in Ferndale.
The council said it is considering the move in response to falling demand for traditional ‘care homes’ with more than a third of available beds in the council’s care homes currently being vacant and the proposed changes could save the council around £2m a year.
But three councillors have signed a call-in in a bid to get cabinet members to reconsider the proposals before it goes out to consultation.
Councillors Cathy Lisles (Independent) Paula Evans (Plaid Cymru) and Karl Johnson (Conservative) have signed the call-in.
Their reasons for the call in include: ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

The residential care homes for older people report discussed at the overview and scrutiny meeting on Wednesday and at cabinet on Thursday is seeking to develop more cost-effective care solutions which are sustainable for the future. The current report as presented fails to do that. Even once these changes were made, if they were to be made, there would still be a £7m deficit moving forward. Therefore, whilst there would be less of a deficit, this service would still be inefficient to a significant level.
The current report as presented fails to discuss the external reasons
for the deficits across all council-run care homes or discuss other
ways to address it save closing care homes.
The current report as presented is limited on the range of options
suggested referring to the closure of just two care homes in the
county.
There is a lack of information as to how the current deficit figure has
arisen for each care home.
The consultation as currently envisaged would mean that the Taf
area of the county is affected to a higher degree that other areas of
RCT being reduced to just one care home with no current plans to
build any new facilities as has occurred elsewhere.
There is a need to further consider the detrimental impact of the
decision on residents and their families.
There is a need for a detailed evidence based report to be further
considered by the cabinet. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

The council has said that residents are increasingly wanting to retain their independence in their own homes or within an independent living complex as they grow older and it has mentioned its commitment to invest in new and modern care accommodation in the Rhondda Fach but recommends that this is focused on dementia care where there is an increasing need.
The council said work is already under way to prepare the Chubb factory site in Ferndale site for development.
The cabinet report from last week said that Ferndale House Care Home doesn’t meet modern standards required to provide continuing high-level and quality care accommodation.
It said it has had low resident numbers over a prolonged period and is therefore no longer financially sustainable.
It said that all residents would have the opportunity to move back to the brand-new care home in Ferndale when it opens.
The council also said that Cae Glas Care Home in Hawthorn has not reached its full capacity and is not operating in a financially sustainable way.
The report recommended an eight-week consultation on closing both homes once suitable alternative accommodation is found for the residents and this consultation was agreed by cabinet members.
The council said that in relation to staff potentially being affected by the proposals it will fully explore opportunities for staff redeployment.
The call in will go before a special meeting of the council’s overview and scrutiny committee on Friday, September 27.
If the proposal to refer the matter back for reconsideration is passed then the
matter will be referred back to the cabinet but if the proposal is lost then the decision to go out to consultation will take effect from the end of the meeting. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​

By BBC LDRS ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​