Somerset care: Husband fears impact on wife's dementia as care home announces it will close

ITV West Country's Robert Murphy speaks to residents and staff ahead of the closures

A man has expressed his shock and concern at how plans to close his wife's care home in Somerset will impact her dementia.

Gill Baker is 83-years-old and lives at Critchill Court in Frome and has found the site, run by Somerset Care, has proved a lifeline after her husband Clive struggles to cope.

But Gill and residents both at Critchill Court and Sunnymeade in Chard were told that both sites will be shutting in the coming weeks, as the operator can no longer afford to keep them running.

Clive said: "Earlier this week, they invited our daughter to a meeting - not me - and they just abruptly said, 'this is just to let you know that we will be closing at the end of April.'"

Clive said the announcement left him in "shock".

"I couldn't really believe it", he added.

The announcement means all residents will have to find alternative places to live - and as some have complex and profound needs, this could prove difficult.

"We've obviously got to plan forward and get on the case", Clive said.

"Indeed, my daughter has been hunting this morning for another home in the area and we believe she has found one," he added.

UNISON: 'Redundancy may mean some staff lose their ability to stay in the UK'

As well as all the residents having to find new homes, staff at both sites have been told they face redundancy.

The workers' union, UNISON, has said it is concerned for many of their future.

Tom Kennedy-Hughes, an area organiser for the union, said: "There are staff that are on sponsorship and they are very concerned, because the risk of the redundancy to them could means not just losing their jobs but not being able to stay in the UK.

"So, there is a real concern to that group of workers and we want to reassure them that we will be working with their employer to find solutions."

Somerset Care told ITV News that the centres met care requirements when they were built in the 1970s and 80s, but that it has found they are unable to keep pace with modern demands.

In a statement, a spokesperson for the not-for-profit company, said: "Somerset Care is not immune to the financial challenges faced by the wider care sector.

"The much-publicised chronic underfunding of the adult social care sector on a national level, along with the financial emergency declared by Somerset Council, mean that the Local Authority care fees we receive do not meet the real cost of delivering the care which we are being asked to provide."

Addressing the closures, Somerset Council told ITV News that "the safety and wellbeing of residents is its top priority", and that their adult social care team have "already been on site to support residents and their families during this difficult time".