A MORAY care home provider is embarking on the first phase of a £5 million expansion.
Parklands Care Homes, based in Buckie, has launched a search for two senior managers to oversee the running of two existing care homes in Tain and Muir of Ord, ahead of their planned replacement in autumn 2013.
Earlier this year, Parklands was named preferred bidder by The Highland Council for a £5 million project to replace the ageing facilities at Urray House in Muir of Ord and Duthac House in Tain with new state of the art facilities.
Each new care home will provide 34 en-suite bedrooms, with scope to increase to 40 bedrooms in the future. Room sizes will be 40% larger than the minimum standards, and bedrooms will feature flat screen TVs, internet connections and provision for direct dialing into residents’ rooms.
The new care homes will be built by the infrastructure, support services and construction group Robertson, which has committed to employ apprentices in the building phase, and engage local suppliers.
In the meantime, the operation of both existing homes will transfer to Parklands later this summer, with staff currently employed by The Highland Council also transferring to the company on their current terms and conditions.
The family run Parklands group currently owns six care homes in Moray and Highland, providing 170 care placements and employing 275 staff.
Managing Director Ron Taylor said the opening of the two new care homes marked the start of an ambitious period of expansion for the company, including the opening of a new facility in Elgin and the replacement of its existing Mount Barker home in Grantown.
Mr Taylor said: "We are determined to ensure that the transfer of Urray House and Duthac House to Parklands is as seamless as possible, and our plans are progressing well.
