South Molton care home plans revealed

PLANS for a brand new 50-bed care home in South Molton were revealed for the first time on Thursday night. It is hoped that the new facility – to be built on redundant land at Widgery Drive, near South Molton Community Hospital - could help to plug a gro

PLANS for a brand new 50-bed care home in South Molton were revealed for the first time on Thursday night.

It is hoped that the new facility - to be built on redundant land at Widgery Drive, near South Molton Community Hospital - could help to plug a growing gap for residential and nursing care provision in the town.

The proposals were unveiled at a special public consultation event in the town's Methodist Church Hall by local firm Eastleigh Care Homes. The new facility, designed by architects from Burritt Holland Ltd, would provide residential and nursing care, as well as specialist dementia care.

Eastleigh - that opened its first care home in the town in the early 1980s, and opened a further home in Minehead in 2005 - has exchanged contracts on the land subject to obtaining planning approval from North Devon Council.

Managing director Garry Wilson told the Gazette that he was hopeful that with planning consent, work could start on the new care home as early as January next year.

"We estimate that the new home would take about a year to build and I'd like to think that if planning goes through, there is a real chance that we could be open in 2011," he said.

"We know there is a real need for more facilities like this in South Molton. We always run at capacity at our existing home