PLANS to demolish a care home and replace it with a 60-bed specialist dementia facility have been lodged.

The proposal will redevelop the former 20-bed Abbeygate Residential Care Home, in Quarry Road, and comes around a year after it closed down.

As previously reported, the Winchester facility was rated as ‘inadequate’ overall by the Care Quality Commission after an unannounced inspection in July 2017, and it was put into special measures.

Then run by Safequarter, it had previously been inspected in March 2016 when managers were served with requirement notices.

Abbeygate Care Home Abbeygate Care Home

Speaking at the time, a Safequarter spokeswoman said the decision to close was made before the inspection.

“There was some criticism to do with maintenance (in the report) but we were not going to do this when it was going to be redeveloped,” she said.

If approved, the new care home would be run by Brendoncare, who opened the new Otterbourne Hill care home in Otterbourne over the summer, and Octopus Healthcare.

Brendoncare CEO Carole Sawyers said: “As a Winchester-based charity, Brendoncare is very pleased to have this opportunity to work with specialists, Octopus Healthcare, and to be able to re-provide the existing facility with a modern, well designed care home in Winchester.

“Our fabulous staff will be working in an environment that helps them to support the individual choices and needs of everyone who lives there.”

A decision on the scheme is expected early next year.