A CARE HOME which closed after residents were found to be at risk of serious neglect is to reopen under new management.

Orchid View in Copthrone will be bought and reopened by Care UK in the summer.

The home was plunged into crisis in October 2011 when three former staff members were arrested on suspicion of ill-treatment and neglect.

It was closed by owner Southern Cross.

According to a subsequent Care Quality Commission (CQC) report, vulnerable residents with dementia were at risk of serious neglect, patients’ dignity was not maintained and major concerns were raised over management of medicine.

Richard Pearman, director of business development at Care UK, said: “This empty building has the potential to be a really fantastic, high-quality home providing compassionate care for older people including those living with dementia.

“We won’t be reopening until the summer because we are absolutely committed to recruiting and training the finest team to deliver the high quality care that we are known for.”

OUR young people are our future. I don’t say that as a vague platitude or as the father of young children but in a very practical sense.

They are tomorrow’s doctors, nurses, construction workers, teachers, retail workers and so on.

Or rather they have the potential to be.

Parliamentary arguments over the economy can often seem a bit detached and fuelled by political point scoring but they have very real consequences.

We are facing a crisis of youth unemployment. The latest figures make for grim reading and show there are now over one million young people out of work – that means nearly one in four 18-24 year olds is unemployed; the highest number since records began. That is a disaster for our young people and a disaster for the future of Britain.

Worse, it now appears that unemployment is becoming entrenched. The number of young people claiming JSA for over six months is rocketing:

In East Sussex the figure has jumped 92 per cent in the last year.

In West Sussex there has been a 48 per cent increase in long term claimants.

Spending so long on the dole at a young age can have life-long consequences. Far too many skilled youngsters are being left frustrated and idle because the jobs they want simply don’t exist.

We often hear Conservative Ministers blaming unemployment on laziness or scrounging, but the truth is that in some of these places there are up to 20 JSA claimants per vacancy at the job centre!

This is a jobs crisis not one of apathy.

The Government is creating a jobless generation, with more young people out of work than ever before. It is painfully clear that the Government’s welfare to work programmes are not doing the job and the time for dithering is over – Ministers must act now before a generation is left scarred by their mistakes.

As part of Labour’s five point plan for jobs I want to see a £2billion bankers’ bonus tax with the proceeds invested in up to 100,000 jobs for young people and a tax break for small firms taking on new employees.

We need to get the economy going again and we need to protect our young people from the blight of unemployment.

If you want to get in touch just email me at {mailto:southeast@peterskinnermep.eu|southeast@peterskinnermep.eu|southeast@peterskinnermep.eu}

And don’t forget you can learn more on my website {http://www.peterskinnermep.eu/|www.peterskinnermep.eu|www.peterskinnermep.eu} and you can follow me on Twitter (@PWSkinnerMEP) and Facebook (Peter Skinner MEP).

PETER SKINNER

Member of the European Parliament for the South East Region

]]> 1.3548919 Wed, 22 Feb 2012 15:20:51 +0000 http://www.crawleyobserver.co.uk/find_it_and_qype_take_down_thousands_of_fake_reviews_1_3548778

Find It, powered by Qype, Europe’s leading consumer reviews site, has cut thousands of misleading or malicious reviews from its 13.5 million online listings.

Taking a tough stance on third parties who abuse online reviews, Find It and Qype have taken down over 2,000 fake reviews in the last month. Around three per cent of new reviews have been deleted since the partnership declared war on unethical listings.

With a new review appearing every 30 seconds on everything from hostels and tourist attractions to hairdressers and minicab companies, Find It and Qype have implemented a continuous campaign to keep the directory clean and ensure all business listings and reviews for the Crawley district are accurate and fair.

Find It, powered by Qype, is committed to stopping people who use its listings for financial gain, and aims to stamp out biased or unreliable reviews.

“Find It is the number one source for trusted local reviews and listings, and working with Qype we want to ensure every single listing is independent and impartial,” Andy Prior, Digital Product Manager at Johnston Press.

Find it, powered by Qype, gives you immediate access to over two million independent reviews on everything from quirky cafés and clubs to plumbers and primary schools. Covering 166,000 locations worldwide, including thousands of real reviews on the best places to go in the Crawley district, Find it powered by Qype is an indispensable guide for locals, at home or away.

Find businesses listed in your local area at www.crawleyobserver.co.uk/findit

WITH West Sussex now officially in a state of drought, a decision by the county council will help with the problem.

It’s joined the Aquafund Shared Saving Scheme, which will help to save water and reduce the bill for what is used.

Plus it will help a charity.

Cabinet Member Michael Brown, who is in charge of the West Sussex purse strings, says he’s delighted that over five years it’s a significant saving.

He chats to Chris Rider, the county council’s broadcast media relations manager.

FIREFIGHTERS were called to Broadfield last night (Tuesday February 21) after an arsonist set fire to a wheelie bin.

A crew was on site at Heather Walk from 11.30pm to 11.50pm.

]]> 1.3548134 Wed, 22 Feb 2012 11:40:21 +0000 http://www.crawleyobserver.co.uk/win_tickets_to_imax_gala_film_screening_of_john_carter_1_3544102

THE IMAX Experience® is coming to Crawley Cineworld next month.

This cutting-edge cinematic experience will provide even more enjoyment for major block-buster films.

A special gala screening of the amazing sc-fi drama John Carter is being held on Thursday March 8 and we have teamed up with Cineworld Crawley for an amazing prize.

We have five pairs of tickets for the gala to be won.

These will be issued via e-tickets so they will be emailed to you if you are one of our winners.

To take part just email an answer to the question below, adding your name, address and an email address (if different to the one you’re sending from) to {mailto:steve.payne@sussexnewspapers.co.uk|steve.payne@sussexnewspapers.co.uk|steve.payne@sussexnewspapers.co.uk}.

The closing date is noon on on Monday February 27.

The IMAX experience offers an’ immersive cinematic experience’ with digital surround sound, custom designed auditoriums and sharper images.

Cineworld said: “IMAX offers cinemagoers the most immersive cinematic experience.

“With ground-breaking digital projection, cutting edge audio technology and one of the largest screens around, the IMAX Experience® will allow Cineworld’s film fans to enjoy the biggest blockbusters like never before.

“Cineworld Crawley is proud to announce that we shall be opening an IMAX screen from Friday March 9. Launching with Disney’s John Carter Carter in IMAX 3D, we shall be screening other IMAX releases such as The Avengers, The Amazing Spider-Man, The Dark Knight Rises, The Hobbit and many others throughout 2012 and beyond.”

John Carter stars Taylor Kitsch as a American Civil War veteran who is transplanted to Mars, a planet inhabited by 12-foot tall barbarians.

Finding himself a prisoner of these creatures, he escapes, only to encounter a princess who is in desperate need of a savior.

With all manner of amazing creatures and settings, this will be an amazing experience in IMAX.

Winners will each receive a pair of tickets to the gala screening on March 9 at Cineworld Crawley, England.

No refunds, alternate prizes and tickets cannot be redeemed for cash.

QUESTION: Who plays John Carter in the movie?

FIREFIGHTERS rescued a woman from a car after a three-car collision in Horsham Road on Tuesday (February 21).

The crash happened near Breezehurst roundabout on the A264 at around 8.30am and involved a Honda Civic and Peugeot 306.

South East Coast Ambulance confirmed it treated a 28-year old woman who was bleeding from the nose following the incident.

Crawley crew manager Bernard Broadway said: “We removed the seats of the car and opened the boot to get her out. She had spinal injuries.”

The woman was taken to East Surrey Hospital by ambulance.

WEST SUSSEX is officially in a state of drought, according to the Environment Agency.

In parts of south east England groundwater levels are lower than the dry summer of 1976, according to Environment Secretary Caroline Spelman.

Water companies may bring in hosepipe bans from early spring where necessary, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) added.

South east England received just two-thirds of the long-term average rainfall for January.

POLICE are linking five burglaries which happened within hours of each other in Crawley.

Between 6.45pm and 8pm on Wednesday February 15 a house was broken into in Tinsley Lane, Northgate, and a red bag with white, yellow and green spots containing Indian gold bracelets and a number of watches were stolen.

At about 8.15pm on the same day three men were seen leaving a house on Highams Hill, Gossops Green, and getting into a silver five-door Volkswagen Golf car index T30 BBS.

A distinctive Omega watch with a thick silver metal strap with a blue/purple circular dial was stolen, along with a number of other jewellery items.

Then at about 9pm an elderly occupant in North Road, Three Bridges, disturbed two men who had broken into her address. The victim saw a small grey or silver car parked outside her home.

Between 7pm and 9.35pm a house in Gainsborough Road, Tilgate, was broken into and a safe and a number of distinctive watches were stolen including an Omega Seamaster silver diver’s watch with blue trim and a chrome strap with quick release clips stolen.

Then overnight between 4.50pm on February 15 and 6am on February 16, an attempt was made to break into a house on Ifield Road, West Green. Damage was caused to the front door of this property.

Detective Constable Rebecca Wilde said: “We are linking all five burglaries and need to hear from any witnesses who may have seen these men or the Volkswagen Golf registration T30 BBS. All five burglaries are believed to be linked.

“We have carried out house to house enquiries and have given crime prevention advice to householders. Anyone who has any information should contact Sussex Police on 101 quoting serial 1411 of 15/02.”

]]> 1.3542852 Tue, 21 Feb 2012 10:58:34 +0000 http://www.crawleyobserver.co.uk/hospital_told_its_hygiene_and_care_must_improve_1_3540034

EAST Surrey Hospital has been told to improve its standards in patient care and cleanliness following an inspection by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

The CQC, which checks whether hospitals, care homes and care services are meeting government standards, reviewed the hospital earlier this month because of concerns that one or more of those standards were not being met.

And while areas such as treating people with respect, staffing and management were given top marks, improvements were called for when it came to cleanliness and making sure patients received safe and appropriate care.

The report stated: “The hospital maintains an appropriate standard of cleanliness and is taking reasonable steps to protect people from infection.

“However, there is an indication that a lack of consistent diligence exists in the prevention and monitoring of MRSA infections.

“On the basis of the evidence provided and the views of people who use the service, we found there are areas of non compliance with this outcome. We have set a compliance action upon the provider to address this.”

The report also said that proper steps had not been taken to ensure patients were protected against the risks of receiving unsafe or inappropriate care or treatment in the hospital’s pre-operative/ pre-assessment area.

Responding to the report, the Surrey and Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust assured patients it had taken “concerted and focused action” to address the issues raised.

Chief executive Michael Wilson said: “Whilst there were a number of very positive things said by our patients, we recognise that we still have further work to do to ensure the care we provide meets the highest standards in every case.

“Following the inspection, we have invested significantly in both time and resource, to make immediate improvements and to plan and implement medium to long term changes to achieve sustainable improvements across all areas of concern.

“I was also heartened by the many positive comments that patients made to the CQC inspectors. They were also positive about the openness, honesty and transparency of our staff.

“Our priority is to make sure that we are able to sustain this progress and I am confident that we will be able to do this, not least because many of the actions were already in train at the time of the inspection.

“I give my absolute commitment to our patients that we will continue to make progress and ensure the right quality of care is always delivered in our hospitals. Complying with the strict standards which the CQC lays down is the number one priority for the Board and everyone at the hospital.”