Agenda item

[Report of the Assistant Director for Commissioning. To be introduced by the Cabinet Member for Adults and Health.]

Appraisal of development options for Osborne Grove Nursing Home.

The Cabinet Member for Adults and Health introduced the report which set out the outcome of the Feasibility Study, carried out to assess the future development of Osborne Grove Nursing Home and seeking agreement to Option 4 as the preferred option of the Feasibility Study. This option was to demolish the current building and rebuild a 70 bed nursing provision including the clinic site, ensuring that the use of the site overall was maximised.

The Cabinet Member reported on the significant consultation undertaken on the proposals with the co-production group which included key stakeholders such as the families of residents at Osborne Grove, trade unions, staff and public health partners. The Cabinet Member was pleased to recommend option 4 for approval.

There were questions from Councillors Barnes and das Neves, and the following information was noted:

• There would be a further report to Cabinet in September on proposals for consultation to close the Home (for the purpose of the development and other reasons) and relocate existing residents to suitable alternative accommodation that will meet their needs and promote their wellbeing. As part of this process, residents and families would be consulted and assurance provided that no moves would be taken forward hastily.

• In relation to including sprinklers in the design of the new build, it was noted that the Council were not excluding this but exploring what this would mean and keeping this option open.

• In noting that the current care home premises was not suitable for nursing care and that the original design was for respite care, the feasibility study was welcomed and the depth and seriousness of the work commended. The Cabinet Member agreed that it was important to future proof any new design according to the services needed.

• The Cabinet Member re-iterated that the Council would be accommodating the existing residents and there would be careful risk assessments and mitigations around the move. The wishes of existing residents and their families would be covered in consultation process. It was also noted that the families of the residents have been participating in co-design group and have approved the option 4.

• Assurance was further provided that with the changing financial climate in local government funding, the site was preserved for nursing home use and there were mitigations in place to counter any change of use. The Cabinet Member emphasised that this was a significant investment in public services and the capital cost was reflected in the report. It was hoped that the seriousness of the intent to provide nursing care and nursing beds was recognised. The site provided an opportunity for greater number of nursing beds to be available to the borough for people who need this in the future. This was a public partnership and the Council would look at the delivery options with the support of the NHS for the clinical expertise to ensure this facility was provided.

RESOLVED

1. To note the outcome of the Feasibility Study carried out with regard to the future development of Osborne Grove Nursing Home;

2. To agree to endorse Option 4 as the preferred option of the Feasibility Study: that is, to demolish the current building and rebuild a 70 bed nursing provision including the clinic site, ensuring that the use of the site overall is maximised;

3. To note that Option 4 allows for a number of uses, identified as examples in s. 6.2.8, aligned to the delivery of nursing care for older people to be accommodated on the site for which further design work is needed and delegate the oversight of this work to the Assistant Director of Commissioning in consultation with the Lead Member for Adults and Health;

4. To note that none of the future development Options including the preferred Option 4 can be safely commenced with the current residents in situ;

5. To note that a further report will be presented to Cabinet in September 2019 on proposals for consultation to close the Home (for the purpose of the development and other reasons) and relocate existing residents to suitable alternative accommodation that will meet their needs and promote their wellbeing;

6. To continue to support the active engagement of a range of stakeholders including the OGNH Co-Design Steering Group, partners, nursing care providers and officers;

7. To note the ongoing work by officers with partners in the NHS, with the care sector and with neighbouring local authorities to develop a sustainable partnership approach to future delivery of care at Osborne Grove.

Reasons for decision

The detailed Feasibility Study, concluded on 31^st May 2019, demonstrates that this land offers significant opportunity for development, increasing provision to a 70-bedded nursing unit. The feasibility study provides the Council four potential development options for the future of the site at Osborne Grove.

Further reviews of activity and demand for nursing care in Haringey and across North Central London have restated the continued need for increased nursing bed capacity in the area. The site, owned by the Council, offers considerable potential for expansion of nursing care capacity which would help to meet the increased demand for nursing care in the borough.

The proposed approach aims to develop a high quality provision to improve outcomes for residents through a model of nursing care which is responsive to need. The existing site is demonstrably not fit for purpose with a number of design issues making the provision of high quality care particularly challenging for an increasingly frail resident population. The approach to quality will be developed to better address future demand, whilst also mitigating the quality of care issues that led to the previous decision to close the home under current management by the local authority.

The feasibility study, as requested in the brief, includes a plan demonstrating how the current residents (now two in number) could be rehoused on site during the construction by phasing the redevelopment. However, the design team have identified that it would not be advisable for the residents to remain on site during the development given the levels of disturbance, including noise and dust, that demolition and subsequent construction would inevitably have, particularly on vulnerable residents who have significant health needs.

Alternative options considered

The option to close the Home and not to revisit an options appraisal for future use of the site was identified but discarded early on as the Home is an asset of great value to local residents and to the Council.

A detailed feasibility study was considered to be the most effective way to explore all viable options for the site. The alternative options are explored in detail in the Feasibility Study and in this report, which now seeks Cabinet approval to implement the preferred design option.

The option to retain a 32 bed dual registration residential/nursing home on the site was considered but rejected, primarily because it would not increase the registered nursing capacity within the borough and because it would not address a number of fundamental design issues with the current building which prevent it functioning effectively as a nursing home and which could not be fully addressed due to structural limitations of the building.