Care Home Census welcomed
David O'Leary • Published 29 Oct 2010 09:30
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FIGURES, released this week, showing the region as amongst the worst in Scotland for offering elderly care home places has been welcomed by Scottish Borders Council.
The Care Home Census, which was published this week, highlights the number of beds that were available in each local authority area over the past decade.
And the Borders ranks amongst the worst - with a 14.3 per cent decrease from 875 in 2000 to 750 this March.
Across Scotland the number of care home places has remained roughly the same with some local authorities, such as North Lanarkshire and Fife, showing 25 per cent increases.
Although the Borders has amongst the highest percentage of pensioners in the country, Social Work bosses believe the reduction shows that their strategies are working.
A spokesman for the department told the Peeblesshire News: “These figures are in line with the council’s strategic aim to enable older people to live in their own homes and communities which has been a consistent message from older people themselves.
“The reduction in bed numbers underlines the success of this work which has reduced the dependency on care homes by providing additional investment into home support services and the number of intensive support packages in the community has substantially increased.”
The 750 places currently available for the elderly is set to reduce even further when Dunwhinny Lodge’s residents move to new flats at Dovecot Road in Peebles.
And similar projects in other part of the region will also see the number of beds decline.
The spokesman added: “The Transforming Older People’s Review also supports this strategic approach and over the next five years the council will continue to develop a range of alternative services in the community including short term intermediate care, a focus on re-enablement and extra care housing models such as that being developed in Dovecot Road in Peebles where work commenced this week.”
The Dovecot Road development is due to be completed in the autumn of 2012.
This article appeared in Peeblesshire News 29 Oct 10
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