Caring for older people in the borough
As people live longer, looking after older residents is posing an increasing challenge for local authorities. Kensington and Chelsea residents have the highest life expectancy in the country, and the Council is committed to ensuring that our older population enjoys the comfortable and active retirement vital for maintaining good health in old age. To this end, we have been working with our partners in the health service and third sector to provide some of the best and most innovative facilities for older people in England.
This year will see two new facilities in Kensington and Chelsea opening their doors to help achieve our aims in this area. Boasting cutting edge design and high-quality features, Ellesmere House will provide long and short-term care for both private and council supported residents, while New Horizons, an activity centre, off Draycott Avenue in Chelsea, is a hub of activity for the over-50s.
Ellesmere: A new lease of life
A decade ago a dilapidated building off Fulham Road was the location of a rundown home for the elderly. Ellesmere had seen better days and desperately needed upgrading, but instead the Council decided that the only way forward was to build an entirely new facility. Under a forward thinking funding deal, it was agreed that developers Taylor Woodrow would bear the multi-million pound cost of building a new care home in exchange for space on the site to build 41 private flats. The borough needed more high quality nursing places for residents in the private and maintained sector, and 30 of the 50 Ellesmere long-stay places will be available to self-funders. The remaining 20 rooms will provide care for Council supported residents with dementia.
Additional income
Ten rooms have been set aside for elderly patients in need of short-term care – for example, for those recovering from a hospital admission. The building also includes a retail unit facing the Fulham Road, which will generate additional income to support council services. The whole scheme has been advanced jointly between the Council and the Kensington and Chelsea Primary Care Trust.
Ellesmere's facilities
Both the communal areas and each bedroom are equipped with high quality facilities but the main attraction is the building's design, the work of architects from Pollard Thomas Edwards Architects and Taylor Woodrow, which is in keeping with its prominent location. Among some of the great facilities on offer is a large rest area which is shaded by a series of coloured windows that mechanically move as the sun makes its way across the sky. A quiet garden and veranda at the back of the building ensures residents can enjoy the outdoors but escape the noise and pollution of Chelsea's traffic. The building will also house a centre for older borough residents requiring day-care.
Dawn of a new horizon
After years of planning and fundraising, the New Horizons centre opened this summer thanks to the efforts of a consortium of charities – Open Age, Sixty Plus and the Guinness Trust – which raised £1.2 million to take the development forward. The building, which is owned by the Guinness Trust, was previously leased to Age Concern who ran a day centre for older people on the site. Designed as an activity centre for the over 50s, the new centre provides a range of activities from tap-dancing to tai chi and is a great place for people to meet.
In addition to providing a range of activities, including creative and performing arts, computers, sports and trips out, New Horizons will work in partnership to provide other services for older people such as complementary therapies, health screening, information, advocacy and outreach. Meanwhile a café run by Camden Charities will provide healthy snacks and lunches.
Funding the deal
Work to convert the old Alan Lennox-Boyd building on the Guinness Estate started last year. Though the Council has given the consortium £50,000 in capital funding, the bulk of the money was generated through donations and fundraising events organised by the Consortium. The Council and the Primary Care Trust have agreed to provide equal funding for a proportion of the day-to-day running costs – currently £150,000 a year. The Council is also contributing £15,000 a year towards providing transport for those using the centre.
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