R&R Life News
Horley's Brambles Respite Care Centre to reopen this Saturday
1:20pm Wednesday 22nd February 2012
Horley's acclaimed Brambles Respite Care Centre for people with Multiple Sclerosis is to reopen this Saturday.
The centre in Suffolk Close, widely regarded as one of the best of its kind in the country, is to welcome its first guests with the exchange of contracts transferring ownership of the complex from the MS Society to new providers MS Respite and Care Services Limited.
The MS Society announced the future of the centre, which closed temporarily last November and which had looked on the brink of being shut down permanently, was now secure.
Stuart Nixon, vice chairman of the MS Society, and Phillip Connell, director for MS Respite and Care Services Limited, said they were “delighted” at the outcome.
Final arrangements will be made to complete the transfer by March 29, from which point MS Respite and Care Services Limited will take over the running of the centre.
Mr Nixon said: “We are delighted we have been able to transfer Brambles into the ownership of such a well-established care provider, and that the centre will continue to provide services for people with MS.”
He said: “It’s been a long process to get to this stage, with many twists and turns, but we’re pleased that we’ve achieved what we set out to do.
“We’d like to thank our staff for their ongoing commitment and support.”
Mr Connell said: “We are delighted to be carrying on this excellent service, established by the MS Society.”
He said: “We anticipate building on Brambles’ reputation with further investment to support the staff and the range of services offered.”
The Brambles announced its temporary closure last November, having struck an 11th hour deal with MS Respite and Care Services Limited, an associated company of St Cloud Care plc, which specialises in providing residential and nursing care.
The centre was due to shut its doors permanently at the end of last November after more than 20 years helping thousands of people with MS and their carers and families.
The state-of-the-art complex, which offers 24-hour care for people with MS and a much-needed break for their carers, had been under threat of closure since the MS Society withdrew its funding in June 2010.
The society made efforts to find an alternative care provider to take over the running of the Brambles, but announced last autumn that its talks with MS Respite and Care Services Limited had fallen through.
Arrangements were being made to close the centre with redundancy talks taking place and letters being sent out to the people who used it, when the MS Society announced that it had reached a last minute agreement with MS Respite and Care Services Limited.
The initial agreement, known as ‘Heads of Terms,’ stated that MS Respite and Care Services Limited would continue services for people with MS and transfer existing staff into their employment.
It was hoped contracts would be exchanged last December, but the process took longer than expected.
The transfer is part of an over-all programme of work which has seen Leuchie House in Scotland and Woodlands respite care centre in York transfer to new providers.
Work is also ongoing to transfer the Helen Ley Centre in Warwickshire.
The MS Society took the decision in 2010 to move away from directly providing respite care services at its four centres, to allow it to focus on enabling people across the UK to access respite and short breaks that are right for them wherever they live.
The society is the UK's largest charity dedicated to supporting everyone whose life is touched by MS, providing a freephone helpline (0808 800 8000), specialist MS information and funding more than 70 MS research projects in the UK.
MS is the most common disabling neurological condition affecting young adults and an estimated 100,000 people in the UK have the condition.
Bookings at the Brambles can now be made by calling the centre on 01293 771644.