MP launches last minute petition to help save 40-year-old Northamptonshire care home

A new petition has been launched to save a long-standing Northamptonshire care home threatened with closure.

Ridgway House, a home in Towcester that has served the community for 40 years, is on the chopping block as West Northants Council is recommending a safe closure programme.

The Cabinet is set to vote on the future of the care home on Tuesday, January 16, following a public consultation sent out in October of last year. The council has said that the facilities can’t meet the needs of an increasing number of people who require residential care.

South Northamptonshire MP Dame Andrea Leadsom, who launched the petition, wrote that she “strongly objects” to the closure until another care facility is available in Towcester.

The council-run home is already under capacity with just 17 residents occupying the 25 available rooms. If the closure is approved they will have to be moved elsewhere; according to WNC there are 107 registered care homes in West Northants, however only five of them are run by the council with a total of 235 bed places.

The MP said: “Having recently visited Ridgway House, I had the privilege of meeting both the dedicated staff and the residents, all of whom share a profound concern about the potential closure.

“Many of the residents have strong local ties and deep-rooted connections to Towcester, making the prospect of relocation a source of considerable distress.”

The consultation results have not been made available to the public, but council documents state that “a significant number of respondents disagreed” with the safe closure programme. It said there was a “general consensus” that facilities need to be improved, but wrote that there is no way of achieving the level of work needed without closing the home.

It highlighted that making “no change” would lead to the number of residents declining further, staffing challenges, and the condition of the building causing more “practical challenges” down the line.

A survey undertaken in 2020 estimated the home would need funding of £1 million over the next ten years to maintain basic standards. Closure of the home would result in savings of £1.377m according to WNC.

The cabinet will make its decision this week. If approved the home will begin its closure and relocating residents with “immediate effect”.

You can read Andrea Leadsom’s petition letter to WNC in full below:

“We, the undersigned, strongly oppose the closure of Ridgway House in Towcester, and ask that the Cabinet of West Northamptonshire Council postpone their decision on this matter until the community has had an opportunity to express their views more comprehensively.

“Additionally, we recognise that Ridgway House is staffed by dedicated individuals who care deeply about the residents, who are themselves very happy and settled there. Any forced relocation would undoubtedly lead to isolation and emotional hardship for these residents and their families.

“Further, we note that there is presently a shortage of adult care homes in South Northamptonshire. Closing Ridgway House will only worsen this problem.

“We understand that the upgrades needed to the home for the next decade would require £1 million of investment. We believe that this could be good value relative to the cost of building a new care home.

“West Northamptonshire Council recently conducted a consultation on the closure. However, with only 180 responses, we feel this limited sample size cannot properly represent the views of the community.

“We ask the Council to reopen this consultation and urge them to publish its findings in full to ensure transparency in the decision-making process.”