Ullapool housing plan for former Mo Dhachaidh care home staff accommodation building
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Former care home staff accommodation in Wester Ross looks set to be turned into accessible housing under plans lodged with Highland Council.
If approved, an existing two-storey building in Broom Court, Ullapool, will be turned into four one-bedroom flats. It was previously used as six bedsit units for staff who worked at the neighbouring Mo Dhachaidh care home.
The care home building, which also houses Ullapool Health Centre, was bought by Highland Hospice back at the start of this year after previous operator Parklands Care Homes announced in January 2023 that it would be shutting the site.
However, the Ullapool community rallied round in a bid to secure the site's future amid concerns over a critical lack of care facilities in the region, and, although the last of Parklands' residents left the home in March of last year, the Highland Hospice stepped in to buy the site in January in order to safeguard the health centre facility. The hospice now acts as landlord for the site, which it leases to NHS Highland to continue operation as a health centre - although the care home element remains closed.
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At the time of the purchase Highland Hospice stressed the former care home would not become a hospice, and the purchase was made instead to generate additional revenue for its wider Highland work while also safeguarding the wider facility.
However, it did not have plans to continue operating the neighbouring staff accommodation building, and this is now the subject of the planning application by Albyn Housing Society to turn it into local residential accommodation.
Under the applicant's proposals, an access ramp will be provided between the site's parking spaces and the flats in order to make them more easily accessible. Ramped accesses will also be installed to all entrances to enable the "building to offer housing for those who are either disabled or have limited mobility".
A supporting statement added that there will be limited external alterations to the existing building. These will include the introduction of two new windows on its north and south flanks for the downstairs flats, the reduction in size of two windows on rooms where new bathrooms will be located, and the infill of an existing door and window to the east. There will also be the new ramped access to the building.
Internally a number of non-load bearing walls will be altered to accommodate the new flat layouts.
The application will be decided at a future date.
