'Upset and grief' caused by uncertainty over Cummal Mooar

Health minister discusses putting planned closure 'on hold'

The health minister says they should 'never have got to the stage they're at' with Cummal Mooar residential home after it was announced plans to close the site down within the next two years have been put on hold.

Manx Care says funding for the design of a replacement facility in the north of the Island had been approved, with a site picked for development, but due there's since been a significant increase in construction costs - the most recent estimate for the construction had risen to in excess of £13m, almost doubling the initial estimate.

It says this global rise in costs affected a number of capital projects, and to manage the impact of this Treasury have made changes to their processes for Government Departments to access the funding they need for projects as large as this.

This means the Department of Health and Social Care is now working with Manx Care to ensure the design of the proposed new building is fit for purpose, before returning to Treasury for updated funding approval. 

“The various options that might come out are that Treasury might agree to fully fund the replacement facility as designed, which would be great news. It may be that Treasury decide to fully fund the alternative design build, or a slightly changed design that we decided what we need...We then have to make a determination on how long that would take to get up and running."

Health Minister Lawrie Hooper says pausing the planned closure means they can make decisions properly:

Vicki Hewison's mum is a resident at Cummal Mooar residential home, and she's been leading a campaign to keep the facility open:

Today and tomorrow Manx Care representatives will be meeting with staff, residents and their families at Cummal Mooar.

The health body and the Department of Health and Social Care say they'll provide a further update within the next three months.