Scrutinising the Future of Perry Tree and Ann Marie Howes Care Centres

What's happened

Birmingham City Council has published a report outlining a new operational model for three of its council-owned adult social care centres. According to the BIRMINGHAM CITY COUNCIL review, which was initiated in March 2024 with a savings target of £6.4 million over three years, the Kenrick Care Centre will remain under direct council management to provide long-term residential and respite care. However, the Perry Tree and Ann Marie Howes centres are slated for a significant change in their operational models, shifting to deliver integrated and intermediate care primarily aimed at supporting hospital discharges.

What it means for Erdington and Pype Hayes

For residents in Erdington and Pype Hayes, the Perry Tree Centre is a vital local asset. Shifting its primary function towards intermediate care and hospital discharge means a fundamental change in how our elderly and vulnerable neighbours access long-term support. While freeing up hospital beds is a critical city-wide goal, this operational shift raises serious concerns about the availability of long-term, community-based residential care beds in our immediate area. Furthermore, the overarching £6.4 million savings target attached to this review suggests that financial pressures, rather than purely clinical or community needs, are driving these operational changes.

Where I stand

I completely understand the argument that Birmingham's hospitals are facing unprecedented bed-blocking, and that intermediate care facilities are desperately needed to help patients transition from wards back to their homes. It is a fair and pressing point. However, as your Reform UK councillor, my priority is ensuring that Erdington and Pype Hayes do not lose out on essential, long-term care provision in the pursuit of a £6.4 million council savings target. We cannot simply hollow out our local community care assets to plug a financial black hole. Any change in the operational model at Perry Tree must come with cast-iron guarantees that the quality of care will not drop, that staff will be supported, and that local families will not be forced to travel across the city to find long-term residential care for their loved ones.

What happens next

The proposals are currently moving through the Cabinet review process. My office is closely monitoring the implementation timeline and will be scrutinising the transition plans for both Perry Tree and Ann Marie Howes. We will be demanding regular updates on staffing retention, bed availability, and the actual financial impact of these changes over the coming months.

Questions we're asking

As the Reform UK opposition, I am putting these specific questions to Cllr Nosheen Khalid on behalf of our residents:

• Given the £6.4 million savings target over three years outlined in the March 2024 review, exactly what proportion of these savings is expected to come from the operational changes at the Perry Tree Centre?
• How many long-term residential beds will be lost at Perry Tree and Ann Marie Howes as a direct result of the shift to integrated and intermediate care?
• What specific metrics will the council use to measure the success of this new operational model, and what is the contingency plan if hospital discharge rates do not improve as projected?
• Can you guarantee that current staff at Perry Tree and Ann Marie Howes will not face compulsory redundancies or detrimental changes to their terms and conditions under the new model?
• If local families in Erdington can no longer access long-term residential care at Perry Tree, what specific alternative local provisions has the council secured, and at what cost?

Have your say

How do you feel about the proposed changes to our local care centres? Please register on the site to leave a comment below, vote in our ward forum poll, and let me know if you or your family will be affected by these operational shifts. Your experiences are vital in helping me hold the council to account.

Source: Birmingham City Council