The family of a dementia sufferer are fearful for his future after discovering his 54-bed care home is to close at short notice following another damning inspection.
Bosses at the Gloucester House in Lansdowne Road, Sevenoaks have told KentOnline the site will shut its doors in early September.
It has operated as a retirement home since 1990 and provides residential, dementia and nursing care to a mix of self-funded and publicly-funded residents.
The current providers, Greensleeves Homes, who took over the site in 2015, say “ongoing challenges”, including staffing issues and financial difficulties have led to its impending closure.
They are initiating a “managed closure” now, they say, rather than prolong uncertainty for its residents, families and staff, and the home says it now has to work to a deadline set by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).
But worried relatives Shaun and Zillah Booth say they have received no formal correspondence from them to say Shaun’s brother-in-law, Malcolm, will be among the residents who need to leave.
The 78-year-old, who loves sailing and classic cars and lived in Tonbridge and West Malling prior to his admission, was under the care of his late wife and Shaun’s sister, Angela, for most of his life until her death several years ago.
Although he was able to live temporarily on his own, his later diagnosis of dementia and Parkinson’s disease means he has been living full-time at Gloucester House since May 2024 – at a cost of £116,750 per year, which equates to roughly £2,245 per week.
The care home insists residents, relatives and staff were all formally notified of the decision to close as soon as they were able to do so.
But Mr and Mrs Booth say they only found out by word of mouth upon visiting.
Shaun, 68, told KentOnline: “We have not been informed by anyone at the care home on a formal basis it is closing.
“There has been no correspondence to us or Malcolm’s sister, Dawn, either.
“We came back from holiday and popped in to see him on Friday evening and heard from someone there it is closing.
“It just made things difficult as he’s having the time of his life smiling and laughing.”
The care home has since been removed from the Greensleeves’ website, while a family fun day scheduled for Saturday was also cancelled.
A May inspection by the health watchdog, CQC, has seen the home now rated “very recently” as ‘Inadequate’ — the lowest score available — with a full report expected in the coming weeks.
It comes just seven months after a previous inspection rated it as ‘Requires Improvement’ after three breaches relating to safe care and treatment, consent and governance of the service were found.
Potential risks to people’s health and welfare had also not been consistently assessed according to the report, which was released in December.
In response, a spokesperson for Gloucester House said: “Following careful consideration, Greensleeves Care has taken the extremely difficult decision to close Gloucester House Care Home, with the closure currently planned for September 2025.
“Like much of the adult social care sector, the home has faced ongoing challenges – including staffing shortages and financial pressures – which have increasingly impacted the quality of its operations and long-term viability.
This is one of the hardest decisions we have ever made as a charity
“Recent inspections by the CQC and internal reviews have identified areas where the service no longer meets the standards we expect, or residents deserve.”
The care provider added that while no harm has occurred, it fully accepted these findings and is opting to initiate a “managed closure” now.
It says several initial in-person briefings are currently being held to answer questions, with clear points of contacts for everyone involved being provided.
“Despite the best efforts of our dedicated staff and leadership team, we are truly sorry that we could not resolve these issues,” the spokesperson continued.
“The CQC has indicated it intends to revise the home’s rating to ‘Inadequate’ and has proposed regulatory action that would ultimately lead to enforced closure.
“To prioritise resident welfare, we have chosen to initiate a managed closure now, rather than prolonging uncertainty for residents, their families, or our staff.
“We are working closely with residents, families, staff, Kent County Council, the local Integrated Care Board and the CQC to ensure a safe and compassionate transition to alternative care, and to support our dedicated staff – including exploring opportunities for redeployment to other homes within the Greensleeves Care family.
“This is one of the hardest decisions we have ever made as a charity.”
Mr Booth fears for the safety of its current residents during their transition to a new home.
He added: “It’s going to be catastrophic and just feels like a snap decision given there has been building work going on too.”
The decision to shut the care home is also misjudged, he believes.
“They just don’t seem to have the residents’ interests at heart,” Mr Booth added.
“The staff are all working for them and have a lovely ethos there. They have a lovely rapport with Malcolm and the residents and I think it’s too good to close.
“It’s clean, the people are happy, entertainment is provided, the food is good and the care is there. Malcolm is having the time of his life.”
Meanwhile, Mr and Mrs Booth are unsure what the upheaval will mean for how Malcolm’s care is financed.
His care is paid for via an annuity fund with Aviva at present – a policy they’re not sure will still be available when he leaves.
The pair added: “Most of the money for Malcolm is paid into an annuity fund from Angela’s pension, but we don’t know yet if we can transfer that for Malcolm’s new home having spent more than £250,00 buying this policy.
“We’re hopeful there’s no clause in there which says it’s only paid if he stays at the same home.”
