Closure looms for Abingdon care home (From Oxford Mail)

Closure looms for Abingdon care home

6:10pm Thursday 12th November 2009

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ELDERLY residents face losing their home in the new year over an increas-ed rent demand.

This week it emerged that Southmoor House Residential Home, near Abingdon, would close in February after a long-running row with its owners, St John’s College, over the terms of its lease.

The care home has been open for more than 50 years and 24 residents face eviction.

Negotiations between managers and St John’s College have reached deadlock, meaning the home, which employs 20 staff, will close on February 4.

Managers declined to reveal the level of the proposed rent increase but said it was substantial.

Staff are currently working with families and Oxfordshire County Council’s social services department in a desperate bid to rehouse residents by the closure deadline.

Care home manager Sophia Rundle said: “We have been trying to talk about it.

“Unfortunately they don’t seem to be able to get our view that we cannot afford the proposed rent increase.

“This means the closure of the home and 24 people being re-homed, which is the worse possible thing. I haven’t got the words to say how it feels.

“My staff are distraught by the situation – we are all beside ourselves because all the staff are going to have to look for new jobs.

“There is no good time, I know.

“Initially we didn’t see any issue with the rent – this has come as a huge blow to us.”

In 2007 the care home agreed to buy the freehold from St John’s College.

But the deal was put on hold because of “tax implications and economic circumstances”.

Earlier this year, the two parties started fresh negotiations over an extension to the lease, but were unable to reach an agreement over its valuation.

Ms Rundle said: “If you look at a modern care home market, expectations now are a lot more than they were 20 to 30 years ago.

“You have to bring standards up and have to be able to do that in the future.

“If we were to agree to such rents the college was looking at we would be left with no profit margin to be able to go forward.

“If we signed a lease that we were going to take on for 15 years and could not raise standards then we would be in dire straits.”

Prof Andrew Parker, principal bursar of St John’s, said: “The increase in commercial rents is one factor, but the costs of complying with the necessary regulations for running a nursing home have also risen sharply.

“The college regrets the loss of any business tenant but, as a charity, has a duty and legal responsibility to make best use of its assets to support its programmes of education and research.”

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