APPROXIMATELY 20 elderly people in Dunfermline are to be uprooted from their homes after their care operator pulled the plug on the care home arm of its business.

Families of residents at the care homes within Gillie Court and Grants Bank were told on Tuesday that their loved ones would have to move as the facilities will be closed by the end of July next year.

In a statement on its website, Bield said it had made the “very difficult decision to withdraw from the residential care home market” as it was in the “best interests” of the long-term future and sustainability of their organisation.

According to their most recent Care Inspectorate report, Gillie Court’s care home can provide accommodation for up to 12 older people while Grants Bank provides accommodation for up to 14 older people in single en-suite flats.

Dr Brian Sanderson, whose mother-in-law is in Gillie Court care home, said they received a call from the home requesting his wife travel from their Broughty Ferry home to be there when her mother was told the news.

They have been given an appointment to discuss future provision – but this will not take place until March.

“We were asking questions they didn’t really have answers to,” he told the Press.

“I presume the burden is going to fall to the already over-stretched social services department.

"Care home provision is tight in Dunfermline and suddenly all these people are coming into the system.”

Dr Sanderson said his mother-in-law, who has been in Gillie Court’s care home for two or three years and was a resident at its sheltered housing provision before that for five or six years, was shocked by the decision.

“I don’t think the consequences have fully sunk in yet – she’s concerned about this and for the staff and other residents,” he added.

Fife Health and Social Care Partnership’s head of strategic planning, performance and commissioning, Fiona McKay, said: “All new placements within the Bield Care Homes in Fife have ceased with immediate effect and we will monitor the situation very closely.

"We are also in close communication with Scottish Care and COSLA who are monitoring the position at a national level. 

“I can reassure people that we have robust contingency plans in Fife to make sure people’s needs are met and that they are looked after in the best possible way, regardless of who may be providing that care.

"These arrangements will be implemented as appropriate.”

Brian Logan, chief executive of Bield, said: “The way organisations provide services to older people has changed significantly from the position 20-30 years ago. Changes in technology, the way housing is constructed and the expectations of the ever-growing older population all continue to move at pace.  

"Like others in the social care sector, we are facing considerable challenges and financial constraints, meaning we constantly have to look differently at how we operate.

"To continue as we have done previously would compromise the vital work we do to support and care for thousands of older people across Scotland.

"To address this, we have developed a five-year strategy that will create a Bield that is well-positioned for the future – and can continue to provide innovative solutions to address the needs of the next generation of older people.

"We need to create a stronger Bield – a Bield which has services that are attractive to the next generation of customers, offering greater choice and flexibility.

"Our five-year vision is bold and we aim to transform our organisation by 2022. To start this, we have agreed to make the biggest and hardest changes first and have these implemented within the next 12-18 months.

"We believe it is prudent to make these changes on our terms, rather than have decisions forced upon us that we have no control over.

"As a result of this new strategy, we have made the very difficult decision to withdraw from the residential care home market by July 2018. This decision affects the care homes in Fife at Gillie Court and Grantsbank in Dunfermline.

"The decision is very much a last-resort option. We have carefully considered a wide range of options to continue delivery of these services, however, we have been unable to find a solution that will be viable in the longer term.

"It is important to stress, where feasible we will continue to operate an element of care provision, through our Bield at Home service and we will work with partners to develop Housing with Care services.

"We are aware of the serious impact these changes will make to people who use our services, their families and our staff.

"Those impacted by the changes have been advised and in the coming weeks and months we will be holding consultation meetings to communicate the reasons for the decision and discuss what options are available to those affected – with the aim of minimising the impact as far as possible.”