Dementia hubs plan to replace ageing care homes

Elderly care homes could be replaced with new support hubs for people with dementia under a £60m plan being considered by councillors.

If approved, the proposals would see seven homes in North Yorkshire owned by the local authority replaced within five years.

The five hubs would be built in parts of the county to meet demand, with the first to be opened in the Harrogate and Scarborough areas.

They would provide residential care for 250 people, replacing homes which the council said needed significant investment.

Servicing and maintenance at existing care homes in Bedale, Filey, Harrogate, Pickering, Selby, Skipton and Pickering cost the council £900,000 last year, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

It is believed that savings, including less reliance on independent providers, would mean the cost of the new hubs would be covered within four years of opening.

Richard Webb, corporate director for health and adult services at North Yorkshire Council, described the plans as "an ambitious redesign of the council's care provision".

He said the hubs would "reduce future costs of up to £14.8m per annum once the full programme has been implemented".

The proposal will be discussed by the council on 7 January.

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