Category Archives: News

The monthly surgery with Geoffrey Boot MHK and Commissioners will take place at the Peel Town Hall from 11am to midday on:

Saturday, 12th June

Saturday 3rd July

Saturday 7th August

The dates in July and August are the 1st Saturday in the month.

All welcome.
Ray Harmer

Thank you so much to everyone who attended the public meeting yesterday.

Today in Tynwald DHSC committed to work towards to a short and long term solution, with an amendment to a motion which Tynwald unanimously approved. This is good news for the Corrin Home and for the West. Here is the motion below.

That Tynwald

1) recognises the status of the Corrin Memorial Home as a private care home and the Trustees and Directors as the responsible persons for the decisions related to it.

2) notes that the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) remains committed to ensuring the long term future provision of care services in the West of the Island and will engage with the community and the trustees to allow for full consideration of the options such as refurbishment and redevelopment; 

3) requests the DHSC, in association with Manx Care where appropriate, develop a clear strategy for the future provision of care services in the West;

4) instructs the DHSC to engage in further discussions with the Trustees and Directors of the Corrin Memorial Home to secure the property, land and curtilage for the future provision of care in the West of the Island; and that the Department of Health and Social Care will work with the trustees to ensure a minimum notice period of six months for residents, if a notice is regrettably necessary.

5) requests that the provision of care in the West of the Island should include the implementation and development of integrated care services.

6)and requests the Department to report back to Tynwald in October on progress

With grateful thanks from the Trustees the following has been received.

Following the request from last nights (17th May 2021) public meeting at the Corrin Hall, I am pleased to attach copies of the accounts of the various charitable entities.  These accounts were filed with the Charities Section of the Registry. The accounts cover Charity 110; Charity 110A and Charity 110B.
The accounts for Corrin Holdings (Charity 1292) will be submitted, for the year ended 31st December 2020, in due course.

Dear Trustees

We write as the MHKs for Glenfaba and Peel to reflect the concern and dismay over the shock announcement of the imminent closure of the Corrin Home in July.

First of all we would express our concern that we were only told of the imminent closure at the same time as the public residents and staff which has left little time to work with or prepare a response to the closures.

There remain many unanswered questions around this, not least why we were not informed and involved at an earlier stage before the same become almost a fait accompli.

Obviously we would like to assist and facilitate in any way we can and have engaged with a number of parties, including Manx Care, DHSC (Minister Ashford), the Chief Minister, Director of Health, Treasury and of course the community and staff of the care home.

The only engagement that we have not had is with you as Trustees and in this respect there seems to be  a total disconnect between the various charities and the operating company with regard to current resource accounts and the vision going forward. You will see an attachment from the charities register and we see there are four Corrin related charities; Corrin Holdings, Corrin Memorial Home Comforts Committee, Corrin Memorial Home Comforts Fund (Governors Accounts), The Corrin Memorial Home.

A fundamental question that we have been asked as MHK’s on numerous occasions is how much money you as the Trustees hold. As you will be aware there is a public meeting on Monday 17^th  and we hope that one or all of you will attend and answer these questions.  

As we understand it residents should have been given 6 months’ notice and we request an explanation around the 1^st July as a closure date.

It has also been mooted that as the site was put in Trust for a hospital or health related use, that you undertake to transfer the site to DHCS/Government at low cost, looking to the future for the provision of a much needed new facilities in the west, this fulfilling the wishes of the Corrin family.

We have also been asked questions around management of the home over a period of time and why the fundamental issue of addressing occupancy staffing levels, building maintenance, costs and overall management control have not been addressed over the last few years.

It is a sad day for the west and more so for the residents, their relatives and the dedicated staff of the home.

It is our opinion, bearing in mind we believe there are restrictions on the use of the site, that there needs to be a strategic plan for residential care going forward that should involve the Corrin Home and/or the site and we sincerely hope that rumours circulating that the Trustees are hoping to close the home and sell the site for residential development are without foundation.

We would be pleased to meet with you before Mondays meeting to discuss all of these issues which we believe should have been aired before announcement of the closure.

Kind regards

Geoffrey Boot MHK and Ray Harmer MHK

Feedback is being sought on proposals that will shape the future of strategic planning and development in the north and west of the Island.

A public consultation has been launched, representing the first formal stage in producing a new area plan.

The Area Plan for the North and West is the local implementation of the policies and vision set out in the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016. Subject to Tynwald approval, it will replace the existing development plans currently in place; these are the local plans for Ramsey (1998), Peel (1989), Kirk Michael (1994), Sulby (1999), St John’s (1999), Foxdale (1999), as well as the remaining parts of the 1982 Plan which covers much of the countryside between the above settlements.

The current stage, which is referred to as ‘Preliminary Publicity’, invites all those interested to comment on the matters which the area plan aims to consider. With consultation documents and accompanying maps providing baseline information, responses will guide the preparation of the draft plan. This includes aiding decision making on where, when, and how land is allocated, reflecting both existing land uses and land proposed for development.

In 2020 a ‘call for sites’ took place, where all persons/groups with an interest were invited to propose sites to consider for future development or specific designations. These sites form a core part of this preliminary publicity, and are now available for viewing along with other relevant documentation.

The consultation documents can be viewed at https://consult.gov.im/cabinet-office/area-plan-for-the-north-and-west-preliminary-publi/

There are drop-in sessions in Peel and Ramsey where Officers will be on hand to talk to the public. 

These include:

Peel – House of Manannan –  18^th May 10.00 – 16.00

Peel – House of Manannan – 24^th May 10.00 – 16.00 

Ramsey Court House – 13^th of May 12.00 -19.00

Ramsey Court House – 21^st May 10.00 -16.00

The closing date for submissions is 5pm on Friday 25 June 2021.

The Climate Change Bill received unanimous approval last week on LegCo amendments which is a historic step and lays the commitment in law for the island to reach net zero emissions by 2050

The monthly surgery with Geoffrey Boot MHK and Commissioners will take place today Saturday, 8th May at the Peel Town Hall from 11am to midday.
All welcome.
Ray Harmer

It has been very distressing to learn of the sudden announcement of the closure of the Corrin Home in Peel. Discussions are underway with staff and Manx Care to ascertain what options are available going forward.

Manx Utilities has published a ‘Call for Sites’ for the Peel Sewage Plant. The closing date for submissions is Thursday 27 May. Those who have land available can contact Manx Utilities at callforsites@manxutilities.im

The pipe work for the new sewage plant is currently being laid and the current timeline is for the planning application to be submitted by February 2022.

This environmental project is critically needed for the benefit of everyone using the Peel beaches without further delay.

From Saturday 1 May, family members, partners and property owners will be able to travel to the Isle of Man as the Island’s border policy moves from Level 4 to Level 3.

As part of Level 3, the isolation requirements for travellers coming into the Island will reduce from 14 to 7 days with a £60 fee, and shared isolation in households will be reintroduced.

Isolation rules for those testing positive for COVID-19 or high risk contacts have been reduced from 14 to 10 days subject to a negative exit test.