Oakdale Care Group, a new care home operator, is developing a chain of state-of-the-art residential facilities for the elderly that will create 180 new jobs after securing a £13 million funding package from Clydesdale Bank.
Buckinghamshire-based Oakdale aims to become a leading provider of elderly care facilities, with plans to deliver three new 66-bed residential care homes in the Northern home counties region. Clydesdale Bank is supporting the development of two of the homes and is providing funding for the third upon completion.
The homes, which are being built by LNT Group, will provide a mixture of residential and dementia care. Each property will offer cinema and garden rooms, landscaped gardens, tea and coffee ‘shops’, beauty salon, full lifestyle activities and transport.
All bedrooms incorporate full ensuite wet rooms, air conditioning and sprinkler systems to ensure the highest possible standards of both care and safety. Ground source heating and solar-panels will help the homes to be energy efficient.
Construction on the Clydesdale backed homes is due to start soon with completion scheduled for the autumn of 2017, creating 198 beds and 180 jobs in their local communities.
Oakdale Care Group has been founded by a small group of individual investor/directors who have significant experience in the sector. The group aims to support the growing demand in the residential elderly care market. According to the Office for National Statistics, more than 11.6 million people are aged over 65, with 1.5 million people aged over 85. By 2039, it is estimated that the number of over-85s will more than double, reaching 3.6 million.
In addition to the three homes being delivered with support from Clydesdale Bank, Oakdale is building a fourth care home in Sutton in Ashfield, which is due to open April next year. The group hopes to create a chain of 10 care homes offering over 600 beds, over the next few years.
Chris Babington, finance director for Oakdale, says: “I’m enormously proud of the high specification homes we are developing with LNT and support from Clydesdale Bank, and in turn the quality services we will be delivering to elderly patients in the home counties region.
“We chose Clydesdale Bank as our funding partner after its healthcare specialists demonstrated a deep knowledge of the sector, specifically around development finance. We also welcome the team’s proactive and flexible approach.”
Johnny Rowe, senior director at Clydesdale Bank, says: “The Oakdale team brings together decades of experience in the sector, building, commissioning and operating quality services.
“Healthcare is a key sector for Clydesdale Bank and our focus is on ensuring the availability of development finance and growth funding for operators.”
