Kingsway Care Centre threat of closure: the SNP can stop it and they must sort this out now
Dundee Liberal Democrats have expressed grave concern at proposals by the Dundee Health and Social Care Partnership to close Kingsway Care Centre. It’s a vital support line for those living with dementia and their carers in the Dundee area and it must stay open.
Liberal Democrat Dundee Council Group Leader Cllr Fraser Macpherson said:
“Local SNP politicians have been publicly vocal about the closure, but they are the very ones who are in a position to stop this closure. The SNP control Dundee City Council, the SNP chair the Health and Social Care Partnership Board and the SNP run the Scottish Government which NHS Tayside is ultimately answerable to.”
“The SNP holds all the cards. They are the ones who can resolve this, so I say to them: don’t just express concern; the SNP is in a position to stop the closure of this care centre – so sort it.”
Councillor Macpherson added:
“The SNP ask for an impact assessment, but you only have to look at Public Health Scotland’s own data to see that those most affected will be the elderly, women and those living in the most deprived communities. These are the groups with the highest prevalence of dementia and all reasons why Dundee should not be deprived of this important facility.”
Councillor Macpherson pointed out that as of 2026 over 90 000 people in Scotland were impacted by dementia, and Public Health Scotland predict this will rise by more than 50% by 2044. On 19th February 2024 the Scottish Government outlined its plans for the initial phase of its 10 year dementia strategy.The government claimed that over the following two years it would ‘seek to work with partners to establish core building blocks for delivering long-term change'.
At the time, Maree Todd, SNP Minister for Social Care and Mental Wellbeing said :
“I look forward….achieve our ambition to keep people living with dementia well for longer, in a setting of their choice.” Warm words indeed.
Age Scotland welcomed the plan, commending the steps taken to involve people with lived experience and other key stakeholders ‘at every stage of the process’."
Councillor Macpherson concluded:
“Yet here we are just into the second half of 2026 and the powers that be have made a decision to close a well-used and much needed facility, Kingsway Care Centre, that supports people impacted with dementia living in Dundee. So much for the Minister’s warm words.”
“This closure flies in the face of the so-called ambition of the SNP government in 2024 to help those with dementia ‘live well longer in a setting of their choice’. And, considering the users of this facility are protesting loudly at its proposed closure, it would appear that Age Scotland perhaps commended a plan to engage stakeholders ‘at every stage of the process’ was perhaps a bit previous.”
“In 2023 the SNP government launched its 10 year plan, yet here they are only 3 years in and they are closing facilities instead of improving them. It is nothing short of shameful.”