New national centre of excellence for dementia care

A £5m national centre of excellence for dementia care is to open later this year in Harrogate creating 70 jobs. Vida Healthcare, the company behind plans for the new 70-bed facility to be known as Vida Hall, says it will challenge current thinking on all aspects of dementia care, particularly in such areas as design and day-to-day care.

Work is underway ahead of its autumn opening and the home will cater for all aspects of dementia care including day care, respite and permanent residences. In particular, it intends to create a best practice working environment that will be a model for care homes in the future by  improving long term wellbeing and promoting freedom of choice.

Vida Healthcare is part of Harrogate-based property and healthcare organisation The Rycroft Group, run by father and son team Chris and James Rycroft.

The managing director James Rycroft said: “We are very excited about the launch of Vida Hall and want to create a bespoke, state-of-the-art facility that will embrace a new era in dementia care and challenge current practices.”