A deal has been struck which will see all residents and staff transfer from a closure-threatened care home in Fife to a local provider.
Last year, Bield Homes announced the closure of 12 of its care homes across Scotland, three of which were in Fife. It has since been striving to find other providers to keep them open.
Following extensive discussions, an agreement has now been reached which will see Kingdom Homes Ltd buy Finavon Court in Glenrothes.
The move means that residents will seamlessly transfer over to Kingdom Homes, with very few changes being experienced and all existing staff will keep their jobs.
Charlie Dickson, director of housing and care services, said: “It’s extremely pleasing that we’ve been able to strike an agreement with such a reputable care provider which has many other care homes throughout Fife.
“The deal ensures that high quality care is still provided to existing service users with no need for upheaval or disruption and also safeguards the jobs of staff.
“We were fully aware of the serious impact the decision to close the care homes made on the lives of the people who use our services, their families and our staff.
“Once we made the decision to close the care homes we worked closely with our specialist agents Christie and Co to ensure that every possible attempt to find new care providers was explored across the country.
“I’m delighted that our discussions with Kingdom Homes Ltd have resulted in this deal.
“Our service users and staff have remained of paramount importance throughout what is clearly a stressful and traumatic time.”
Talks are said to be ongoing over Grantbank and Gillie Court in Dunfermline, with the decision to withdraw from the residential care home market described as a “last resort” for Bield.
Colin Smart, managing director at Kingdom Homes Ltd, said: “From the moment we first visited the home and met with the staff and residents we knew that Finavon Court could not be allowed to close and thus we worked tirelessly with Bield to come to an agreement to allow Kingdom Homes to takeover and ensure the continuation of the service.
“Safeguarding the home for all the residents who live their along with the jobs for all the staff who currently look after the residents.
“When we had discussions with the local authority about Finavon, they stressed to us that they felt Finavon was a real community-based care home and they were very keen to see it continue to provide the care it does for the local community in Glenrothes.
“Great credit should be given to the staff who have maintained a positive attitude at the home and ensured that the residents have remained well cared for.
“We will look to build on this and support the existing staff to continually improve the service for the residents at Finavon in the future.”
