PLANS have been submitted for a 15-bed care home in Darlington.

If permission is granted, the new residential care home will be built on land in Hundens Lane, off Yarm Road, in the town.

The home would provide 24-hour care, seven days a week, for patients who would otherwise face prolonged stays in hospital despite needing respite care rather than urgent medical attention.

It is hoped the new unit would go some way to relieve the bed blocking pressures on Darlington Memorial Hospital, which has been made worse by the closure of many nursing homes in the borough.

The closures came after the Government announced that all care homes had to meet new tougher standards of care.

Darlington Borough Council and some private providers decided they could not afford to make the changes and announced the closure of many homes. The lack of care beds has led to many elderly people being forced to stay in hospital until they are ready to return home.

Darlington Primary Care Trust and Darlington Social Services have secured £634,000 from the Department of Health to build the residential unit.

Both the trust and social services will meet the running costs for the service once it has been set up.

Led by nursing and therapy staff, the unit will focus on returning patients to independent living as quickly as possible. It will also have additional facilities for carers.

Planning officials are expected to decide whether to approve the unit at a meeting at the end of November.

A project team including representatives from the trust, Social Services and GP practices in the town is already in place to oversee the building and setting up of the home