Care home construction imminent

A £3.5m care home is to be built at Monks Lane in Newbury to cater for 24 patients with severe mental disabilities

CONSTRUCTION of a new rehabilitative care home in Newbury for people with severe mental disabilities is due to begin soon.

The £3.5 million 24-hour secure care home will be built in Monks Lane, Newbury, and will cater for 24 patients, with ties to the area, who currently reside in Prospect Park hospital, Reading.

Paul Cowans, regional manager at the Priory Group, the firm behind the care home, said: “We have been planning this development for a long time but we hope that building work will commence in the next few months and the residents will transfer from their current home to our fantastic new facility.”

“We have held consultations with local people and responded to all their questions and concerns. We sincerely hope that our residents will be a fully integrated part of a supportive community.

“We are now working with the residents who will move into the new home, their families and carers to ensure that the facilities planned fully meet their needs.

“This will be their home for many years and we want to ensure that they are fully involved in the decision making process.

Despite initial local opposition to the development from residents angry at the loss of a greenfield site and the increased strain on the road network, the development was backed to the hilt by Newbury Town Council and West Berkshire Council and sailed through the planning process.