Elderly residents at Cospicua Home got a knock at their door with some “terrible news” on Monday morning: they were asked where they would like to move before the residence is shut down and rebuilt.

“We were given a paper with names of homes and asked to choose by mid-June,” said one 70-year-old man who has been living at the home for over a decade.

“The homes close by are in Għaxaq, Paola, Fgura and Marsascala. There are residents here who have lived in Cospicua all their lives and have family here. Some relatives are already saying they won’t be able to visit often if we move away from here. For us elderly people, this is terrible news.”

Every day, the elderly resident heads down to a garden nearby. “That is my daily outing. I don’t know if this sort of thing will be possible once I am moved to a new place.

“But, at the end of the day, I’m not the one to decide – they do,” said the man who asked not to be named for fear he would “be picked on” at this uncertain crossroad in his life.

“Everyone is shattered and people here are crying.”

The home, which is run as a private-public partnership, can accommodate up to 136 residents and currently hosts about 120.

Some relatives are already saying they won’t be able to visit often if we move away from here. For us elderly people, this is terrible news

Sources from within Bormla Home said staff members were telling residents that the home was going to be knocked down and rebuilt but gave no time frame.

The Ministry for Active Ageing announced the development on Saturday, saying the residence requires work to ensure it “conforms to the high standards and levels of dignity that the government requires of homes for the elderly”.

The home is due to be knocked down and rebuilt. Photo: Chris Sant Fournier

Residents appear to be unhappy with the plan. On Monday, they hung bedsheets with messages such as "we are not leaving here" and "the elderly are not disposable." 

The Cospicua care home was subject to a standards assessment just a few years ago and the government spent €292,000 to install air conditioning chillers in 2021.

Natalie Briffa Farrugia, chairperson of CareMalta, said that CareMalta operated the home through a public-private partnership but the decision to close it down was taken by the government.

CareMalta would ensure that the 120 staff members would be given alternative employment but was not involved in relocating the residents, she said.