£3.1m to spend on Crick Road development by next March

Monmouthshire council has £3.1 million of use it or lose it funds to spend on the new Crick Road care home project by March 2021.

Building work for a new care home and 271 on Crick Road in Portskewett is expected to start next year following delays to the scheme.

In the council’s adult select committee, Cllr Paul Pavia said: “The big concern around Crick Road and what potentially mitigating factors that could be put in to manage that risk because it sounds like if a proportion of the project is not delivered in the next financial year then we lose a huge amount of money.”

The council still has £3.1 million, which has been given by the Welsh Government through the integrated care fund (ICF) to put towards the cost of the new care home, which must be spent by March 31, 2021.

The council’s finance manager for social care and health Tyrone Stokes said: “We have got a large amount of money we have secured from the capital integrated care fund.

“We have got a project board in terms of Crick Road that is firmly on our site. With a capital scheme like this you do invariably have delays, some of them we had planned and did try to anticipate.

“We are working on the majority of the ICF fund to be spent by the end of next year and any underspend we will try and offset against the council budget and then we can roll that forward into 21/22.

“That gives us the maximum flexibility.”

In the council’s budget monitoring report, it says £171,000 is being rolled over to next year because of delays to the project.

Mr Stokes said: “The reason for that is in the early years of a major capital development, the cost is mainly around fees for architects and planning.
“We will carry that money forward towards the main build, which should start taking place next year.”

Cllr Louise Brown asked whether the delays would impact the ICF.

Mr Stokes said: “We have got a plan, it is in place and we will spend a large chunk of external funding which we have got through the ICF.

“At the moment although we do have delays, we don’t see any major problems that we have to report back.

“There is a risk with any capital scheme but it’s one we are firmly sighted on, should we detract away from that greatly we will report that back at our next earliest opportunity.”

The care home is part of a wider Crick Road development, which will also see 271 homes built.

The care home will be run by the council, while the 271 are being funded and built by Melin Homes.

Despite objections from residents, the building work for the project is due to start next year.