Epsom MP David Seymour and the ACT Party have today supported a rally to buy back the Laura Fergusson Epsom site.
Epsom MP David Seymour and the ACT Party have today supported a rally to buy back the Laura Fergusson Epsom site.
“The Laura Fergusson Trust has been a safe haven for young people with physical and neurological impairments to receive treatment without having to go to a rest home, as many now are,” says Mr Seymour.
“We want everyone to know the site is for sale again. The Trust Board, as a cash buyer in a sinking market, should buy it back. Failing that, the Government should.
“There are 40 units that could house disabled people right now. The specialist gym and hydrotherapy pool could be re-opened for the disabled community again.
“The land was a sold but the developer who bought it has now put it back on the market. Given the deteriorating market conditions and rising interest rates around the world, it appears the buyer no longer wants to develop apartments on the site. That is a massive opportunity for a cash buyer such as the Trust.
“The Trust says it closed because it had debt, couldn’t afford to fix run down facilities, and couldn’t get staff.
“Perhaps it could now get the land and buildings back, pay the debt, and fix up the buildings, some of which are quite new - like the disabled-friendly heated pool. It could go back to doing what the founders raised the money for in the first place.
“This facility helps young people with disabilities. The Trust should be doing absolutely everything it can to support them. Young people don’t belong in rest homes.”