A CARE home in Neath Port Talbot will stay open until 2025 it has been announced this week, after concerns that it would close in the next six months.
Trem Y Glyn residential care home in Glynneath provides residential care and support for people aged 65 and older, including those with dementia and other illnesses.
The home is managed by Welsh-based care group Pobl, on behalf of Neath Port Talbot Council, however it was due to close by March 2024 after members of the council heard how the building would soon be at the end of its operational use.
It was given an extension by members in 2023, after officer recommendations due to the pressure it could put on the local health and social care system if it closed, citing how: “The social care market continues to be unpredictable and unstable.”
However, the Trem Y Glyn Action Group formed and said it would do everything it could to maintain the facility for the elderly and vulnerable members of its community.
It has led the authority to announce a further extension on the care home this week, now taking its life up until at least March 2025.
A Neath Port Talbot Council spokesperson said: “The council has agreed that Trem Y Glyn will continue to operate as a care home until March 2025. All options for the future of the care home past this date will be considered in due course, including a consultation with residents, family members, staff and any other interested stakeholders.”
Glynneath Town Councillor Del Morgan, who is the convener of the Trem y Glyn Action Group, said he was happy the closure had been extended but wants a longer-term solution to be found.
He said: “Any news like this is good news, especially if it holds off the closure of the care home, though we are still desperately anxious to get a permanent solution to the issue.
“This care home means everything to the community, as the residents are surrounded by the wonderful members of staff who work here as well as members of their family who live nearby.
“It means everything to us to maintain a care home in the valley and the alternative is unthinkable.”
Carolyn Edwards who is also a Glynneath Town Councillor said: “This is good news for now but it still doesn’t give any permanency for members of staff to know they may only have their job for another year.
“It definitely doesn’t give any peace of mind for the residents who may be uprooted from their homes and moved to other parts of the borough if it closes, so we still want to get a long-term plan put in place.”
