Care home firm to create staff training centre

Published on Wednesday 28 April 2010 20:53

PLANS have been unveiled by Avondale Care to develop a £5.1 million, purpose-built management and training centre for care staff, together with a new headquarters for the company.

A 60-bed home with nursing will be included in the development at Glenbervie Business Park, Larbert. It is expected to create 120 jobs and as many as 200 Avondale staff and care workers from other care homes in Central Scotland could be trained at the centre each year. The developer is Bluewater Scotland.

Avondale currently operates care homes with nursing and a dementia centre in the Falkirk and Ballingry area, with construction of a third care home with nursing at Dunfermline due to start.

Avondale says there are 41 care homes within ten miles of the Falkirk location alone that could potentially send staff to the facility. The local population over the age of 65 is forecast to grow by 35 per cent between 2006 and 2021. It is hoped the facility will be operational by October next year.

Alan Hendry, director of Avondale, said: "We have long had a vision of creating a state-of-the-art training facility at the heart of our operation. We believe that a knowledgeable workforce is more motivated and capable of maintaining a higher-quality care."