Local school children are being tasked with drawing up with potential names for Edinburgh’s latest state-of-the-art care home.
The £8m home, being built on the site of the former Kings Inch Special School in the south of the city, is due to officially open later this year and will be the fourth new care home to be commissioned by The City of Edinburgh Council since 2007.
Residents and staff from the two current care homes, Balmwell House and Craigour, will be moving to the new building in the spring.
Pupils from Liberton Primary School, which is next to the new home, have been tasked to come up with potential names which will be shortlisted.
Voting slips will then be issued to both residents and staff from Balmwell House and Craigour homes and the school children, with the most popular name being the winner.
GRAHAM Construction, who are building the care home, will also be donating £100 worth of book tokens to the school.
Head teacher Anne Clark said: “The children are really looking forward to doing all the research for new names. It’s a great way for them to find out more about the local heritage and history of the area.”
Health and Social Care leader, Councillor Paul Edie, said: “I’m sure the pupils will benefit greatly from all the research they will be carrying out into suitable names.
“This new home will give residents the opportunity to stay in accommodation, which is more suitable to their needs and will give them a better standard of living.
“As a Council we are committed to offering high quality residential care for older people who need it in the city and giving them a home for life. It’s important they have choice in the care they receive and this new home will widen their options.”
Bert McCulloch, Contracts Director at GRAHAM Construction, said: “We felt it important to involve the children in Liberton Primary School throughout this prestigious care home project to provide them with some insight into the construction process of such a building.
“We are delighted to have been involved in this, our third Design & Build Care Home, for the City of Edinburgh Council and to have donated the book tokens.”
Service users were consulted at length over the design of the new building which will be sub-divided into smaller group living units of 15 bedrooms, each with their own sitting and dining areas. Bedrooms, which are of a good size (all above Care Commission standards), all have en-suite shower rooms.
The council are also hoping members of the local community will take an active role in the life of the new care home by sharing their skills/resources and considering different roles such as volunteering.
The new care home is part of Edinburgh’s Live Well in Later Life strategy, which aims to provide a wide range of quality care and support, to meet older people’s needs both in their own homes and in carefully designed care homes. The new care home will be beneficial in providing a caring and supportive service for older people so they can enjoy a better quality of life.
