THE FIRST 11 beds have received official registration at the newly-opened Malsis Hall specialist care service in Glusburn.

The Care Quality Commission granted the registration to Enhanced Community Healthcare Options Group (ECHO), which has converted the former Malsis School.

ECHO said new services were assessed to check they were likely to be safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led, through site visits, interviews with managers and a detailed review of how the service would be run.

The Grade II listed building will provide recovery and rehabilitation for people with mental health conditions, mostly from within a 30-mile radius, and ECHO is still recruiting staff to fill the centre's 130 roles.

Lisa Gardner, service director at Malsis Hall, said: “We are incredibly proud of the service we have created at Malsis Hall and delighted that the Care Quality Commission has acknowledged our hard work and registered the first phase of beds.

“Malsis Hall and its services have been received very positively by local commissioners. We look forward to working closely with them to place individuals who will gain great benefit from our specialist support as they strive towards living as independently as possible.”

Lisa said the team at Malsis Hall would provide a holistic approach to care, with the person’s care needs reassessed regularly, to ensure that personalised treatment goals were met, and the experience of community living was maximised.

She said people using Malsis Hall would be encouraged to develop and maintain social contacts in the area in order to aid their recovery.

Malsis Hall is also ing meeting spaces for local groups and football pitches for use by Sutton Juniors.