Bat find fails to hold up care home plan (From York Press)

Bat find fails to hold up Fulford care home plan

8:06am Monday 8th October 2012 in News By Mike Laycock, Chief reporter

COUNCIL chiefs say a new state-of-the-art care home in York should still be completed by 2014, despite bats being found at the old care home it will replace.

The super-care home, planned on the site of the former Fordlands home in Fulford, is one of three such new homes being planned by City of York Council at a total cost of £13.5 million.

The project also involves the closure of the city’s old “outdated” nine elderly person’s homes, including the Fordlands home which shut earlier this year.

Graham Terry, assistant director, adult commissioning, modernisation and provision, said a bat survey carried out as part of the project plan had identified a bat roost within the old care home building.

“This was not unexpected, and because bats are a European Protected Species (EPS) a licence will be required from Natural England for the demolition of the building,” he said.

He said a bat box had recently been placed in a suitable location on site to provide an alternative roosting space. “By erecting this now, there is time for bats on site to find the roost before hibernation.”

He said the plans to build the new care home on the site were under way and it was currently anticipated to be completed in 2014. The other new homes planned are a “care village” on the site of the former Lowfields School and a replacement for Haxby Hall.

The council has said previously that a consultation exercise into the proposed care home shake-up, responded to by more than 1,000 residents and local organisations, had shown strong public support.

More than eight out of ten had agreed with modernisation to meet the needs of the next 40 years and a clear majority also said they believed care should focus on the needs of people with dementia and high dependency.