I ATTENDED the Gargrave Parish Council meeting in July as the closure of Neville House was on the agenda. Subsequently I read the letter from staff at Neville House which they had sent to the North Yorkshire Council Executive (Gargrave care home site will not be sold to highest bidder, Craven Herald online).

My observations from the meeting are that after many stays of execution, this is finally the end for Neville House. It is effectively closed now as there is only a handful of residents left. Discussions are already underway with families of those residents about their relocation.

North Yorkshire Council are pursuing the ‘Extra Care’ option which they have pioneered apparently, schemes are already running in various parts of the county. Their plan is to have a facility built on Eshton Road and they hope that it will be operational in a few years time but did acknowledge the problems with the current economic climate. The council will hold public meetings at some point to explain the scheme. The Neville House site will be redeveloped.

‘Extra Care’ may well prove to be a better option, but in the meantime, the loss of Neville House will be very sad for staff, residents and the village.

J Birks

Gargrave