A much-loved Whitley Bay seafront building, which has undergone an extensive, five- year restoration programme to transform it into a striking new care home, will be officially opened next week. (14 October)
The former Rex Hotel building – built in 1907 as The Waverley Hotel – has been almost completely rebuilt and fully refurbished at an overall cost of £12m by its owners, Prestwick Care Group.
And the newly named Bay View House will be officially opened on Tuesday 14 October.
Behind the property’s façade the building has been totally remodelled to provide 83 bedrooms over five floors, providing residential care, general nursing, dementia residential care and dementia nursing.
The top floor will provide four luxurious penthouse suites for residents who wish to be cared for while maintaining maximum independence, while each of the bedrooms will have its own, private, en-suite bathroom facilities, along with specialist beds, bespoke fitted furniture, TV and free Wi-Fi.
Elsewhere within the home residents and their visitors will also be able to enjoy a bar, cinema room, restaurant and hair salon as well as numerous lounges and family rooms for social events and entertainment or simply for quiet times.
Many of the bedrooms and communal rooms have windows offering uninterrupted views of the sea front, with its extensive beaches and historic St Mary’s Lighthouse to the north and the coastal village of Cullercoats to the south.
Outdoor spaces and seating are also available where residents and visitors can enjoy sunny weather and clean sea air within the home’s courtyards, or at the secure fourth floor roof terrace.
Around 80 full and part-time and associated jobs have been created at Bay View House, said Prestwick Care, which has been providing care services in the North East for more than 35 years and is part of Malhotra Group PLC.
Prestwick Care CEO, Bunty Malhotra, said: “We, as a company, enjoy restoring and retaining local landmarks as they are important to the North East heritage.
“This building has a very interesting history as a hotel, ballroom and bar/nightclub and remains close to people’s hearts.
“So, our aim was to retain as many of the original features as possible, such as the dome and the internal architectural beauty of the building along with windows and columns.
“Specialist craftsmen were employed to carry out the works and, although an extremely challenging project, it has also been very satisfying to ensure this
beautiful building will continue to serve the local community.”
Prestwick Care Group has also unveiled a new website with feature videos and walk-throughs of each facility within its portfolio
For more information call Bay View House on 0191 5003600 or email bayview@prestwickcare.co.uk or visit www.prestwickcare.co.uk.