£5million care home upgrade creates 100 new jobs

A former care home has been brought back to life with a £5 million transformation that’s created 100 new jobs in the Bridgend area.

The state-of-the-art facilities for people with dementia at the 60-bedroom Anwen Care Home in Pantyrawel were officially opened by Ogmore AM Huw Irranca-Davies, the Minister for Children and Social Care.

The former Blackmill care home which was closed in 2012 was acquired by Care Inn who manage 13 care homes across South Wales.

They have spent four years fully upgrading the building and the first phase opened in 2014.

The latest and final phase of the project has seen the completion of a new ground floor facility featuring 11 bedrooms and communal garden area.

Some of the new rooms boast their own private garden areas with stunning views of the surrounding hills and valleys while a brand new, nostalgically-designed cinema room has been created to take residents on a trip back in time.

There’s also a new café, hairdressers’ and beach area complete with a Japanese pagoda.

The home, which incorporates the very latest innovative approaches to dementia care, was officially opened by Welsh Government Minister Huw Irranca-Davies during a celebration event attended by residents, staff and their families.

Mr Irranca-Davies said:

“It was a great pleasure to visit Anwen Care Home to officially open the new facilities. It’s great that more people are now able to benefit from this personalised and specialist care as well as the lovely facilities and surroundings at the home.

“The dedication, warmth, care, enthusiasm and professionalism of the staff who work there make a really positive difference to the quality of people’s lives, which makes it such a special place.”

Care  Inn director Sanjiv Joshi said:

“The completion of our ground floor unit is a significant milestone in our four-year journey to transform this redundant site into a modern, pioneering facility for the delivery of exceptional dementia care.

“All of our staff and carers are delighted with our new facilities and are boosted by the Minister’s words of support.

“The Minister and  our MP Chris Elmore, have been very positive about the care we provide – not just the physical environment but also what our teams have been able to achieve for dementia residents. We’re thrilled the efforts and commitment we’ve put into this home has been recognised and is appreciated by all.

“We’re working very hard to provide a truly person-centred approach to dementia care in accordance with the national campaign which aims to reduce reliance on medication to manage the symptoms of the condition. There’s lots of research to indicate this kind of approach achieves better outcomes for those with dementia and we would echo these results.

“We’ve had terrific successes at Anwen by delivering responsive, interactive care for our dementia residents. Our approach is centred on maximising the opportunities for positive engagement between staff and residents and it enhances the mood and mental wellbeing, reducing levels of agitation and improving the quality of life for our residents.

“Our new state-of-the art facilities including a new vintage-inspired cinema room will create even more opportunities for our staff to encourage participation and therapeutic care and develop the interests of our residents.”

Work on the ground floor unit has included the construction of a new road providing ambulances direct access to this floor.

The building work, which was completed by Care Inn’s Property team, concludes a four-year refurbishment project however there are plans to expand the accommodation in future.

Mario Kreft MBE, the Chair of Care Forum Wales, congratulated the team at Anwen for the opening of their new ground floor and the enthusiasm staff showed for improved dementia care.

“Anwen really is at the forefront of dementia care, not just providing first class facilities for residents but also by embracing such a personalised, responsive approach to care to stimulate communication and participation,” he said.

“The addition of a cinema and café really enhances the community feel of the home and encourages residents to get involved, all of which has a positive impact on wellbeing. All credit goes to the team – their hard work and commitment really is making a difference.”