Friday March 6th 2026
New plans will see Torcroft House in Whitburn upgraded along with another residential care home in Livingston.
Written by Local Democracy Reporter, Stuart Sommerville
Plans to build a new residential care home for children in West Lothian have had to be redrawn because of escalating costs.
The council set aside £900,000 in 2023 for a new building to replace Whitrigg House in East Whitburn.
However construction costs pushed that budget to £1.2m so a new plan will see two other existing care facilities upgraded following an agreement by the council’s Executive this week.
Whitrigg House no longer meets Care Inspectorate standards.
Original plans to build a new facility near Whitrigg are now above the available budget. However, improvements are also required at Torcroft House in Whitburn and Letham House in Craigshill to ensure they remain compliant going forward.
Under proposals developed by West Lothian Council, the existing residential house, Torcroft House in Whitburn will be modernised and improved to provide six en-suite bedrooms, a welfare suite providing private space for visiting families and ancillary (non-residential) staff facilities.
In addition, Letham House in Craigshill, Livingston would be repurposed to provide four en-suite bedrooms, a welfare suite and continuing care accommodation along with non-residential staff facilities.
Whitrigg House will not be used as a registered residential care facility and would either be repurposed for an alternative operational use or formally declared surplus and disposed of in accordance with the council’s approved Surplus Property Procedure.
Anne McMillan, Executive councillor for Social Work & Health said: “The council is committed to delivering new, £1.35million, improved facilities that will meet the needs of our children and young people going forward and increase our capacity to provide care and support locally.
“Funding is becoming more scarce and in the absence of sufficient budget to deliver a new purpose-built facility on the approved site at Raeburn Crescent in Whitburn, officers have considered a range of alternative options and have concluded that the modification and redevelopment of existing facilities at Torcroft House and Letham House offers a strong alternative that would meet existing and future service needs within the parameters of the available capital budget.”
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