BUILDING work is expected to begin during 2020/21 on a new care home and 271 homes in a Monmouthshire village.

And Monmouthshire County Council has £3.1 million that it must use or lose by March 2021 in relation to the car home aspect of the scheme, in Portskewett.

There have been delays in getting the Crick Road scheme off the ground, and a councillor has expressed concerns about the funding - from the Welsh Government - that could be taken back if it is not used in time.

“The big concern is around Crick Road and what potentially mitigating factors could be put in to manage that risk, because it sounds like if a proportion of the project is not delivered in the next financial year, then we lose a huge amount of money," said Cllr Paul Pavia at a meeting of the council's adult select committee.

The £31.m was awarded through the Welsh Government's integrated care fund (ICF) to put towards the cost of the new care home - but it must be spent by March 31 2021.

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Tyrone Stokes, the council’s finance manager for social care, said: “We have got a large amount of money we have secured from the capital integrated care fund.

“We have got a project board in terms of Crick Road that is firmly in our sight. With a capital scheme like this you do invariably have delays - some of them we had planned and did try to anticipate.

“We are working on the majority of the ICF fund to be spent by the end of next year and any underspend we will try and offset against the council budget, and then we can roll that forward into 2021/22.

“That gives us the maximum flexibility.”

In the council’s budget monitoring report, it says £171,000 is being rolled over to next year - 2020/21 - because of delays to the project.

“The reason for that is that in the early years of a major capital development, the cost is mainly around fees for architects and planning," said Mr Stokes.

“We will carry that money forward towards the main build, which should start taking place next year.”

Cllr Louise Brown asked whether the delays would impact the ICF.

Mr Stokes said: “We have got a plan, it is in place and we will spend a large chunk of external funding which we have got through the ICF.

“At the moment although we do have delays, we don’t see any major problems that we have to report back.

“There is a risk with any capital scheme but it’s one we are firmly sighted on. Should we detract away from that greatly, we will report that back at our next earliest opportunity.”

The care home is part of a wider Crick Road development, which will also see 271 homes built.

The care home will be run by the council, while the 271 homes are being funded and built by Melin Homes.