HERTFORDSHIRE COUNTY COUNCIL
CABINET
MONDAY 12 SEPTEMBER 2005 AT 2.00 P.M.
Balmoral Day Centre, Watford and Hornbeams Day Centre, Welwyn Garden City
Report of the Corporate Director (People and Property)
Author: Colin Cooper,Principal Estates Officer, Hertfordshire Property
Tel: 01992 588114
Executive Members:- David Beatty
David Lloyd
Local Members:- Audrey Oaten
Sue Jones
- Purpose of report
To consider the future of Balmoral Day Centre, Watford and Hornbeams Day Centre, Welwyn Garden City
- Summary
- The Fulfilling Lives Development Project for adults with learning disabilities envisages day services being modernised and moving away from the existing day centres to a “hub and spoke” model of service with community based outreach services (the “spokes”) being supported by smaller purpose built day centres (the “hubs”) which would provide for clients with higher needs and also co-ordinate the services being provided at the “spokes”.
- It is proposed the Project will be implemented over a five year period and Balmoral Day Centre Watford and Hornbeams Day Centre Welwyn Garden City will be part of the first phase.
- An officer working group has been developing proposals to implement this first phase and a position has been reached whereby decisions are required to authorise the disposal of the current sites and to acquire and invest in the new facilities.
- It is planned for the services currently being delivered from Balmoral Day Centre to be re-provided in “hubs” already owned by the County Council serving Watford and Bushey separately together with a number of community based outreach bases.
- The existing Balmoral Day Centre would be sold for redevelopment with the capital receipt being used to fund the capital works required to adapt the premises forming the new “hubs and spokes”.
- For the re-provision of the services at present being provided by Hornbeams Day Centre, it is proposed the Welwyn Garden City “hub” will procured by an arrangement with a developer who is redeveloping the adjoining site. The developer would build the new day centre on part of the existing site and buy surplus land.
- The Hatfield “hub” would be formed by taking a ground lease of land and by extending a Hatfield Town Council owned asset at Roe Hill Hall. The “spokes” will comprise a number of bases using existing local community buildings.
- The capital funding for the Hatfield “hub” and the various outreach facilities will be provided from the sale of the land surplus following construction of the smaller Hornbeams replacement building.
- There would be a net surplus of capital arising from implementation of these proposals and it is suggested that those receipts be earmarked for investment in the later phases of the project where net deficits may arise.
3.Conclusion
3.1To enable the reprovision of Balmoral Day Centre, Watford and Hornbeams Day Centre, Welwyn Garden City, Cabinet is invited to agree:-
a)disposal of the existing sites of Balmoral Day Centre and Hornbeams Day Centre as the first phase of the implementation of the modernisation of day services for adults with disabilities,
b)the capital receipts from disposal of these sites be allocated to fund the capital works required for the re-provision
c) the taking of a long lease of land at Roe Hill Hall, Hatfield,
d) that 65 Queens RoadWatford be held for the purposes of section 29 of the National Assistance Act 1948, section 45 of the Health Services, Public Health Act 1968 and section 2 of the Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons Act 1970
e)that, in order to help with the management of the new construction, timing of disposal and investment decisions on the new accommodation, for Phase 1 of the project, the setting of budgets for the projects be delegated to the Corporate Director(People and Property) in consultation with the Executive Members for Resources and Adult Care Services and the Director of Finance.
4 Background
4.1The County Council is required to modernise and reprovide the services procured the existing day centres for learning disability clients across the County in line with the requirements of the Government White Paper “Valuing People”, which acts as a national framework for people with learning disabilities
4.2This work has been encapsulated into the “Fulfilling Lives Development Project”, which contains the “Day Services Modernisation Programme”,and was approved by the Adult Care Services Board in February 2005 and by the Joint Commissioning Partnership Board on 14th July 2005.
4.3The project seeks a “hub and spoke” approach, moving away from providing services in large purpose-built premises to having smaller community based projects that enable integration and inclusion into mainstream community life. These can be delivered from various premises, probably owned by third parties as “spokes” by way of agreements with third parties but there will still be the need for specialist facilities owned by the County Council as the “hub”, which can co-ordinate the overall service, and provide a base for clients who will require a higher level of care.
4.4Over the next three to five years, a programme of capital bids will be made which aim to re-provide and modernise all eight Day Services for people with learning disabilities in Hertfordshire. In the firstphase spanning 2004 to 2006, three day services, Balmoral in Watford, Hornbeams in Welwyn Garden City and Shepherds in Rickmansworth, have selected for re-provision but in the case of Shepherds, the existing building will be retained without the need for any significant capital expenditure.
4.5Future phases in the programme will re-provide the day services for people with disabilities at Stevenage (Leyden House), Hoddesdon (Geddings), Hemel Hempstead (Jarman), StAlbans (Butterwick) and Baldock (Baldock Centre/Grey Slates)
5.Balmoral Day Centre
5.1This comprises a single storey purpose-built day centre dating from the mid 1960s, providing day services to approximately 140 people with learning disabilities fromWatford and Bushey.
5.2It is located on the edge, but within, an industrial and manufacturing part of north Watford, which was an appropriate setting for the service when first developed thirty years ago, when there was an emphasis upon adult training centremodel.
5.3The site area is some 0.83 hectares (2.05 acres)and is held freehold.
5.4Part of the building is used by a charitable organisation (DRUM) which provided day services for the physically disabled. This service is supported by the County Council and any reprovision proposal would need to ensure that alternative accommodation for this group has been identified.
5.5A County Council officer project group was established to work on the reconfiguration of the services but its work has been frustrated by the unavailability of an affordable site in an appropriate location for the “hub” buildings required to reprovide the service. It is likely that there will be separate “hubs” for Watford and Bushey.
5.6A low opportunity cost in a County Council-owned building (65 Queens Road, Watford) has emerged, which when combined with the use of another County Council building (the Newton Price Centre adjacent to Central Primary School near Watford town centre) on a sharing basis, will provide the solution to the “Watford hub” building requirement.
5.7The current proposal being explored for the “Bushey hub” is to use the Bushey Youth and CommunityBuilding adjacent to FalconerSchool in Falconer Road, Bushey. This property is owned by the County Council but let to trustees, who manage the building. Discussions are in hand with the trustees in order to secure day-time use of the building.
5.8It is planned to relocate DRUM into the Parkgate youth building adjacent to ParkgateInfantsSchool in north Watford. This is currently managed by a management committee and discussions are in hand with the management committee in order to secure the use.
5.9A number of Outreach projects are planned, and some have already been implemented, to provide the “spokes”. These opportunities include the Holywell Garden Project working with Watford Borough Council at Vicarage Road allotments in westWatford.
6.Hornbeams Day Centre
6.1Hornbeams comprises a purpose-built single storey day centre constructed in the mid 1960s.The site area amounts to some 0.66 hectares (1.63 acres)
6.2It provides day services to learning disability clients from Welwyn Garden City and Hatfield.
6.3It is located in an area of Welwyn Garden City, which was primarily industrial in nature but recent developments abutting the site include a food retail superstore and new residential development.
6.4It is envisaged that there will be separate “hubs” each for Welwyn Garden City and Hatfield.
6.5A County Council officer working group has been established to take the project forward and preferred options for the “hubs” have now emerged.
6.6For the Welwyn Garden City “hub”, opportunities on potential surplus sites have been considered but the most beneficial option is provided by working with the housing developer of the adjoining site. This land was formerly an industrial premise but benefits from planning permission for residential development. Phase 1 of the residential development scheme has been completed but discussions with the developer over the last year or so have resulted in a scheme whereby the developer would construct the “hub” building on part of the Council’s Hornbeams site and transfer the completed building to the County Council. The remaining part the currentHornbeams site of would then be sold to the developer.
6.7The preferred solution for the Hatfield hub has come from good partnership working with Hatfield Town Council. The Town Council runs a number of leisure facilities in Hatfield, one of which is at their Roe Hill Hall site.
6.8This comprises a community building located on the Roe Hill Hall recreation ground at Briars Lane which also, in part, serves as changing accommodation and clubhouse for the sports users of the playing field.
6.9The existing building does not have sufficient facilities to provide for the day service but it is envisaged that the County Council construct an extension to the building.
6.10This extension together with the existing accommodation would be used mainly during the day time by the County Council for day services. Use of the facilities by the local community would be encouraged, including a proposed sports café and internet information point. Some of the new facilities, for example, changing facilities for wheelchair users, would be available for wider community use outside the County Council’s hours of operation.
6.11The use of the property would be secured by way of some form of long term lease in order for the County Council to take full benefit from full investment.
6.12The spokes for the Outreach activities would be provided from a range of local community buildings, some of which have already been secured, for example, use of Douglas Tilbey House, Woodhall Community Centre, Welwyn Garden City YMCA, Welwyn Garden City and Panshanger Football Clubs and Woodhall Library.
- Town Planning
Balmoral Day Centre, Watford.
The existing site is in an area allocated for employment purposes in the approved Watford Local Plan. However, there are proposals to re-generate the general area in the vicinity of Watford Junction railway station and this includes the day centre site. Redevelopment therefore as part of a larger mixed employment and residential redevelopment scheme is likely to be permitted.
Hornbeams Day Centre, WelwynGardenCity.
The developer of the adjoining land already has planning permission to develop the land in his ownership for housing. He has been in detailed discussion with Welwyn Hatfield Council officers in respect of a revised proposal which would see the surplus part of the existing Hornbeams site redeveloped for housing with a smaller day centre featuring as part of the proposals. Indications are that this would receive a favourable officer recommendation and it is anticipated that the developer will submit a planning application in the autumn months.
The Roe HillHall Centre Hatfield. Early feasibility work has been shared with town planning officers of both the County Council and District Council and it seems very likely that a scheme for additional community facilities will be acceptable in principle, subject to detail design of the proposed new building.
8.Financial Implications
8.1The replacement of Balmoral and Hornbeams Day Centres are shown in the County Council capital programme as self-financing schemes.
8.2The estimated capital receipt from the disposal of Balmoral is £2.25m.
8.3The estimated capital receipt for the disposal of the surplus part of the Hornbeams site is £1.1m.
8.4The estimated cost of the capital projects to reprovide the Balmoral services amount to £624,900, plus the cost, yet to be quantified of the Bushey “hub”. The breakdown of these costs on a property by property basis is set out in Appendix 1 attached.
8.5The estimated capital cost of the capital projects to provide for the Hornbeams services total £927,000 and the detail is set out in Appendix 2.
8.6The estimated value of 65 Queens Road, Watford is £445k
8.6The net surplus of capital arising from Phase 1 of the project is thus approximately £1.25m before the cost of the Bushey “hub” is taken into account but including the opportunity cost of 65 Queens Road
8.7The overall revenue costs of the new model of service will be contained within existing budgets.
8.8 The surplus capital receipts will be returned to the general “pool” of capital receipts.
8.9 It is anticipated that much of the capital expenditure would have to be forward funded until the surplus sites have been sold.
8.10 In order to aid the financial management of each scheme, it is proposed that delegated decisions in relation to the setting of the capital budgets for each scheme, the timing of the investment and of the disposals, be taken by the Corporate Director, People and Property, following consultation with Executive Members for Resources and Adult Care Services and with the Director of Finance
9.The criteria used by the County Council for self-funding schemes
9.1The County Council requires the following points to be met:-
- Change cannot be achieved within the budget guidelines
- The proposed scheme is estimated to be robustly self-financing
- There is a real impediment to beneficial release of resources
- The cash-flow effect can be accommodated within the capital control limits as they affect the County Council as a whole
- Disposal receipts revert to the “pool” if external funding is achieved.
9.2The proposals could be agreed as eligible under these criteria.
Appendix 1
Estimated capital costs for the reprovision of Balmoral Day Centre, Watford
ITEM / COST / REMARKSRefurbishment of 65 Queens RoadWatford / £500,000 / Current estimate
Improvements to the Newton Price Centre Watford / £150,000 / Current estimate
Expenditure on various other smaller outreach sites incurred before 1st April 2005 / £24,900
TOTAL / £624,900 / There will be an additional items of expenditure for the Bushey hub but these have yet to be assessed
Appendix 2
Estimated capital costs for the reprovision of Hornbeams Day Centre, Watford
ITEM / COST / REMARKSHatfield Hub / £850,000 / Class A estimate
WelwynGarden City Hub / £50,000 / The figure is for fitting out – the main construction will be funded by the developer – estimated cost is £800,000
Hatfield Outreach / £15,000 / Estimated costs to adapt premises
WelwynGarden City Outreach / £12,000 / Estimated costs to adapt premises
TOTAL / £927,000
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