Campaigner’s bid to stop former Derbyshire council care home building from being sold
A concerned councillor has launched a campaign and a petition to stop a former Derbyshire County Council care home building from being sold and to keep the property as a community asset.
Bolsover District Cllr Ashley Taylor wants the county council to stop the planned sale of its Thomas Colledge House building, on Oxcroft Lane, in Bolsover, which used to be a county council care home and which has recently been put up for auction with a guide price of £375,000.
The decision to auction the property follows efforts by the county council to sell the former care home with seven others to a private care provider but after this failed the homes were closed, residents were transferred elsewhere, and the county council began considering re-purposing or selling the buildings.
Cllr Taylor, whose ward is Bolsover North and Shuttlewood, said: “Why are we selling off valuable community assets without giving local people a real say in their future?
“Once this building is sold, it’s gone, gone as a potential care facility, gone as a community asset, and gone from public ownership.”
Cllr Taylor has launched the Save Thomas Colledge House campaign and organised a petition to persuade the county council to pause and stop the sale and potentially keep the building in public ownership.
He argued the county council should consult residents and stakeholders, publish all considered options, explore reopening the facility for care provision, consider alternative community, health and well-being uses, and give people a voice in its future.
Cllr Taylor added: “Together, let’s send a message to the county council, pause the sale, listen to local people and look at how this facility can once again serve the community of Bolsover.”
The county council held an initial extensive public consultation on the future of the eight care homes and their original proposed sale, and after the collapsed sale of the homes to a single care provider it subsequently declared its intention to re-purpose or sell the buildings.
By September, the council had put up three of its former care home properties for sale at auction includingThomas Colledge House with a guide price of £375,000, Briar Close House, in Borrowash, with a guide price of £300,000, and Castle Court Care Home, at Castle Gresley, Swadlincote, with a guide price of £600,000.
The remaining five closed former council care home buildings, also facing an uncertain future, include: The Grange, at Eckington; Lacemaker Court, at Long Eaton; The Leys, at Ashbourne; New Bassett House, at Shirebrook; and Rowthorne, at Swanwick.
The council’s former Conservative administration originally agreed to cease operating nine care homes in 2024 and to sell them on to care providers, including Belper’s Ada Belfield, while managing a multi-million pound budget deficit.
It argued there was a need to refocus adult care services by supporting more dementia patients and helping more people to stay at home due to what it claimed was a decline in demand for residential care.
The new Reform UK council adopted the strategy after the elections in May, 2025, and following the collapsed sale of eight of the nine care homes to a single provider in December, the authority confirmed in September that the Ada Belfield operation is to be transferred to Welford Healthcare subject to Care Quality Commission registration.
UNISON and campaigners had opposed the sales and closures of the care homes, led protests, organised public meetings and repeatedly urged the council to rethink plans which it argued risked uprooting vulnerable residents and breaking up experienced care teams.
County Cllr Joss Barnes, Cabinet Member for Adult Care, has stated the original move to sell the council’s care homes to other care providers followed a decline in demand for traditional residential care as people choose to stay in their homes for as long as possible.
He also claimed that by the time people need to go into care they need more intensive support, such as nursing care, which the council cannot legally provide.
Cllr Barnes previously stated that by remodelling county council care services the authority will be able to support even more people coming out of hospital as well as the growing number of people with dementia and their carers by offering wraparound specialist dementia care.
He added that the council has refocused its in-house services on specialist dementia care which means it can help more people to remain at home and live independently and the changes will help to create a sustainable care service for the future.
Cllr Barnes also said supporting older and disabled people is still one of the council’s highest priorities and it is absolutely committed to maintaining and developing quality residential and home care in Derbyshire.
Concerning Thomas Colledge House, Cllr Taylor added: “I believe local people deserve a say before valuable community assets are sold off for good.
“Before this facility is auctioned, every opportunity should be explored to bring it back into use, particularly as a care facility that serves local people.”
The Thomas Colledge House property is due to be auctioned on October 28 by BTG Eddisons Property Auctioneers.
The listing also notes that the adjoining Bolsover Day Care Centre, which currently forms part of the wider site, is expected to be auctioned separately with a guide price of just £100,000 in November.
Cllr Barnes said: “The council has a responsibility to make decisions based on the future needs of Derbyshire residents.
“The decision to transform our in-house care services followed a full public consultation and extensive consideration by the council.”
Cllr Barnes added: “Those decisions have already been implemented. Residents have moved into alternative accommodation and the council no longer has an operational need for Thomas Colledge House.
“Some campaigners have suggested that the building should be brought back into use as a care home. While I understand why that idea appeals to people, the reality is that simply reopening a former care home does not address the care challenges we face today.”
Cllr Barnes pointed out that retaining a vacant building without a clear service need carries ongoing costs for taxpayers which is why the council has decided to dispose of Thomas Colledge House through auction by way of a long lease in order to secure best value for residents.
He added: “Our duty is to ensure that public resources are directed towards frontline services and the people who rely on them – and we work alongside the private, voluntary and independent sector to ensure there is enough capacity to meet demand.
“Difficult decisions are part of that responsibility. While I appreciate that not everyone will support this decision, I believe it is the right one for the future of adult social care and for Derbyshire taxpayers.
“Our focus now should be on seeing Thomas Colledge House brought back into productive use rather than remaining empty and unused, while continuing to invest in the care services that residents need today and will need in the future.”
Those interested in finding out more about Cllr Taylor’s petition can visit https://c.org/gSdJ4ggHFg for details.