Two Liverpool care homes to close just months after opening

Two Liverpool care homes run by Shaw Healthcare are to close due to the economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, less than a year after first opening their doors.  

In a statement, Liverpool City Council said a formal consultation has begun at Brushwood in Speke and Millvina House in Everton, and work is getting under way to identify new homes for residents to move to.

The £8m Brushwood care home was commissioned by the local authority and opened in October 2019,

It was the first local authority-built care home to open in the city since the early 1990s, while Millvina House, which was also commissioned by the council opened a month later.

Shaw Healthcare’s chief operating officer, Mike Smith said the COVID-19 pandemic has had a ‘significant impact on the UK and the care industry has been badly affected by this deadly disease’.

‘We operate Millvina House and Brushwood on a leased basis from Liverpool City Council with additional costs such as staffing and the provision of equipment also being met by us,’ said Mr Smith.

‘Since the start of the pandemic we have made significant and unsustainable losses brought on by the change in market conditions as a direct result of Covid-19. Despite working closely with the council to try and put the financial performance of both services on a stronger footing we have been unable to find a workable, long term solution.

‘Following much effort on behalf of Shaw and Liverpool City Council we came to the mutual conclusion that delivering care using these buildings in the current climate is no longer tenable,’ he added.

Liverpool City Council’s cabinet member for adult health and social care, Cllr Paul Brant said: ‘We acknowledge the challenges faced by Brushwood and Millvina House care homes with great sadness.

‘The local and national impact of COVID has resulted in vacant capacity in Liverpool’s care homes. The vacancies mean that we need to consider alternative uses/purposes for Millvina House and Brushwood, hopefully within the health sector, where negotiations are already at an early stage.

‘Our priority now is the residents and families and the council has allocated a team of social workers to each home to assist Shaw in supporting them,’ added Cllr Brant.

‘We would like to thank Shaw Healthcare for the excellent care that they have given and know that this has been appreciated by residents and their families.’

Photo Credit – Stevepb (Pixabay)