One of Scotland’s most experienced care home operators has criticised the amount being spent on a new Fife Council care home – at a time when public finances are under massive pressure.
Renaissance Care chairman Robert Kilgour said the sum being spent by Fife Council on building the 36-bed replacement for Methilhaven residential care home in Methil was £3 million more than on similar facilities in the independent sector.
The response by Fife Council to a Freedom of Information request by Mr Kilgour has revealed that the new home, where work began in October 2020 and is due to be completed in April 2022, will cost the public purse £7.2m – up from £6.1m when the plan was first mooted in 2018.
And this does not include land costs as the site – which formerly accommodated Kirkland High School – still belongs to Fife Council.
This total cost figure means the build cost per bed on this development will be £200,000, 74% more when compared with the current average total of £115,000 total build cost per bed for independent sector care homes – equating to an overspend of £3m.
“When you look at the total cost per bed, this is undoubtedly Scotland’s most expensive care home,” said Mr Kilgour, who operates 15 homes throughout Scotland.
“It is simply not good value for local taxpayers’ money at a time when public finances are massively under pressure, and there is a real responsibility for Fife Council to get value for money from the public purse.
“Councils only seem prepared to pay around half the costs per person per week being incurred in their own care homes for local residents to be placed in independent sector care homes.
“Where are the cost controls and accountability for this kind of over the top spending of money which obviously has to be found from other parts of tight local authority budgets?
“This excessive £3m spend has to be coming from somewhere. The question that has to be asked is what other local services in Fife are suffering to fund this unnecessary profligacy?
“Local authorities say that they are strapped for cash and can’t afford to pay independent sector care homes the true cost of care.
“Yet Fife Council is willing to pay massively over the odds for the construction of the most expensive care home in Scotland.”
Mr Kilgour has previously called for Audit Scotland, the public spending watchdog for local government in Scotland, to carry out an investigation into the situation across all 32 council areas, and said it was time local authorities were “open and honest” about the costs of building and running their own care homes.
He added: “What is taking place is a blatant misuse of public money, with tens of millions of pounds being wasted every year.”
“Sadly there is no level playing field when it comes to funding elderly care in Scotland. How can local councils expect independent care homes to operate on far lower funding than their own homes?
“I want to highlight the double standards in operation. Local councils are not being realistic and honest in recognising the true costs of care.”
Scottish Conservative MSP Murdo Fraser, who represents the Mid Scotland and Fife region, said: “This is an astronomical sum of money to be spent by Fife Council, especially at a time when local authorities’ budgets are tight due to the impact of the pandemic.
“I fully understand why Robert Kilgour is very unhappy about this issue and I’m sure many Fife residents will share his concerns.”
Nicky Connor, director of the Fife health and social care partnership said: “The development in Methilhaven is more than a care home, it’s a care village, which includes a 36 residential bed care home, a nursery, a day service for older people, a hairdressing salon and a community drop-in/café area.
“The care village will also feature 35 extra care two-bedroomed bungalows for older people around the site and will have a ‘village green’ area for everyone to enjoy the outdoor space. The care village is the first of its kind in Scotland and there are real opportunities for intergenerational learning between the children and older people and bringing communities together.
“The Methilhaven Care Village is part of Fife Council’s commitment to replace nine of its 10 residential care homes to provide the highest quality care and support in line with Care Inspectorate and Health and Safety guidance, whilst maintaining a homely environment for its residents.
“The initial budget for the care village was £6.1m in 2019, however, due to the Methilhaven development being the largest site with increased infrastructure and the impact of Covid-19, this has now increased to £7.2m.”