The inception of care facilities in Britain can be traced back to 936, when York constructed the inaugural almshouse.
According to legend, it was Aethelstan, the King of England at the time, who funded its construction after observing clergymen of an earlier incarnation of York Minster using their own funds to care for the elderly. “Alms” signifies the act of bestowing virtue or compassion upon others.
Often referred to as “bedehouses” after the Anglo-Saxon word for prayer, these edifices were financed by affluent individuals who believed that their contributions would enhance their prospects of attaining celestial acceptance.
Under Thatcher’s Conservative administration of the 1980s, residential care facilities became a lucrative industry. Prior to this, the majority of care facilities were owned and operated by local governments. However, over the course of the decade, the number of available spaces in self-funded care facilities tripled. Fast-forward to 2023, and the council care home is becoming a rarity.
Knowle Manor Care Home, in Tennyson Terrace, Morley, looks set to be closed as the Labour-run Leeds City Council desperately tries to avoid bankruptcy. As we reported on this site recently, in order to create a legally required balanced budget, the council must save £58.4 million over the next 12 months, in addition to the £7.4 million already agreed savings.
In 2010, there were 19 council-run care homes, representing 628 out of a total residential care bed base of 2214 across the city. Today, there are only three. Knowle Manor Care Home provides care for up to 29 elderly people. If the home closes, as proposed by the council, the elderly and vulnerable residents will have their lives turned upside down.
In total, there are now 113 care homes providing care for elderly residents in Leeds. In recent years, a large number of individuals and organisations have jumped into the care market, seeing the provision of care homes as a quick way to make large profits from the most vulnerable. Care staff, many imported from the Third World, are usually only paid the minimum wage.
Additional proposed cost-saving measures include the ending of the lease on a popular museum, the implementation of parking fees at three busy municipal parks, and the “repurposing” of a care facility in Rothwell; however, these initiatives have not yet received official approval.
The small-boat invasion, the migrant-led population explosion, the problems with the NHS and the incompetence of our elected politicians are all factors creating the perfect storm from which genuine National Socialists and racial Nationalism can mushroom in size in the coming years.
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Top Image: Google Maps
Lower Image: Danie Franco on Unsplash
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