New opening
into it once the care home is occupied by at least 80 per cent of its capacity as this would be the best way to assess the system performance from the energy point of view.” Signature at Highgate has an EPC certification of B, with the home’s comfort cooling system (which enables the constant movement of cool, clean air around the home) slightly increasing the amount of electricity used, leaving the home a few points shy of an A rating.
Elasticity of care There were around a dozen residents living in Signature at Highgate at the time of my visit in late January. In common with other responsible providers, the process of reaching resident capacity at the home will be a marathon rather than a sprint. “As you would expect, we don’t move
everybody in on day one,” Wayne confirms. “We would allow a year and a half to fill the home.”
Signature at Highgate is registered for 96 residents, and couples can share a suite if desired. There are 24 specialist dementia suites, which can be found at the rear of the building, which is arranged around an impressive, two-tiered, central outdoor space. Signature takes a particular approach to the care it provides, as Wayne explains: “We have elasticity of care,” he tells me.
“The average age here will be around 85 years old. You have some relatively fit 85 year olds who will move in and they might just need some light residential-type care or very little care, and they just want to be in the right environment where there’s lots of activities and lifestyle and companionship and they’re in the right place to age further – all the way through to full residential, specialist nursing, palliative, and dementia care, all under one roof.
There has been an effort on Signature’s part to break up a rather imposing space into cosier areas
“Because we’re registered as a nursing
home, we can care for our residents’ needs through that spectrum. We have elasticity of accommodation. We have the 24 specialist dementia units in a secure environment within the building, and then we have different-sized suites, from the more typical nursing home studio – which is still an industry-leading size of 25 square metres – all the way through to one bedroom suites which are 40 square metres. We might [even] be a bit bigger than 40 square meters – maybe up to 45 square metres – where it made sense as part of the design to have a slightly larger suite in that location. “So, for example, if you have very high
nursing needs, possibly a studio room is more appropriate. And you would pay for your care needs based upon the care that you need to be receive, so there are packages of care that we offer. “If you’re more fit and active – maybe
you’re single or maybe you’re with your husband or wife – a one bedroom suite might be more appropriate, and therefore what you’re prepared to pay for when you when you move in.” As for what you might be prepared to pay
to live at Signature at Highgate, fees for a studio room start at £2,135 per week, rising to £2,485 per week for a one bedroom suite. Additional care packages range from £225 to £1,125 per week, with bespoke packages available.
Homely luxury
From the striking, art deco-inspired staircase that greets guests when they arrive at Signature at Highgate, there is no mistaking the fact that this is a high-end, luxury care home. Nonetheless, Signature is keen to emphasise that its new home should still feel like ‘home’ for its residents. As Wayne puts it: “It’s a care environment, but we’ve worked really, really hard to make it feel homely and normal.” Whether living in a £50m luxury care home on Billionaire’s Row could ever feel truly ‘normal’ probably depends on what your definition of ‘normal’ is, but there has clearly been an effort on Signature’s part to break up what could easily have been a rather imposing space into cosier, less- intimidating areas.
“It’s a large building, but we try to make
everything domestically scaled in terms of lounges and seating areas,” says Wayne. “So,
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www.thecarehomeenvironment.com March 2024
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