Decision on Abbotsbury older persons’ care home
Wednesday, 14 April 2021
A plan to close Abbotsbury older persons’ care home in Biggleswade and move residents to alternative, more suitable accommodation was agreed at our Executive meeting on 13 April.
While the care at Abbotsbury older persons’ care home has been rated as outstanding by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), the physical building is no longer fit for purpose and lacks the modern facilities now and for the future.
As part of our ongoing work to improve accommodation for older people in Central Bedfordshire, we launched a 14-week consultation on the future of Abbotsbury in October 2020.
We asked for the views of current residents and their family members, with individual meetings offered to discuss the proposals in more details. We also asked the general public and key stakeholders to share their views.
Following a review of all the feedback and consideration of several options for the future of the care home, our Executive has agreed to close Abbotsbury as we support residents to move to alternative, more suitable accommodation. One of these options is a new care home currently under construction on London Road, Biggleswade, due to open late summer 2021.
Councillor Carole Hegley, our Executive Member for Adult Social Care said:
We want the best possible quality of life for all of our residents and are committed to developing and improving accommodation with care for older people.
The decision to close is no reflection on the fantastic work of staff and the care they offer, however we need to ensure that the physical building meets the modern standards residents require and deserve. Which is why closing Abbotsbury and moving residents to a new care home is the preferred option we have chosen.
Residents and their families will be fully supported in the move to their new home and this will be done with care, consideration and sensitivity.