9% drop in the number of residential beds in the Western Trust

Between June 2020 and June 2024 the number of residential beds in WHSCT decreased from 681 to 619 (nine per cent).

At June 30, 2024, these 619 residential beds locally were made up of 438 independent beds and 181 statutory beds.

The figures are contained in the Department of Health’s newly published ‘Statistics on Community Care for Adults in NI 2023 - 2024’.

The bulletin shows that between June 2020 and June 2024, the number of independent nursing facilities remained the same in WHSCT with 31 in total.

The number of statutory nursing facilities in WHSCT reduced from two in 2020 to zero in 2024.

The number of nursing beds decreased in the Western Trust by three per cent from 1,499 in 2020 to 1,449 in 2024.

At June 30, 2024, 1,867 residential and nursing home care packages were in effect in the Western Trust - the lowest number of care packages in effect in the North.

Of the 1,867 care packages in effect, almost three quarters (74 per cent) were nursing home care packages and one quarter (26 per cent) were residential care packages.

There was an eight per cent increase in the number of nursing home care packages by 98 from 1,287 to 1,385 between 2020 and 2024.

There was a four per cent decrease in the number of residential care packages in the Western Trust by 20 from 502 to 482 between 2020 and 2024.

At March 31, 2024, 1,055 persons were registered at statutory day care facilities in the Western Trust.

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