Plans to transfer residential homes for older people in Oxfordshire to a non-profit-making organisation have been delayed while the complexities of the 25-year contract are ironed out.
Responsibility for residential care homes run by Oxfordshire County Council was expected to pass to the Oxfordshire Care Partnership on November 1.
Nick Welch, assistant director of social services, said the transfer date had been postponed because there was still a lot of legal, contractual and technical detail to be finalised.
The county council has signed a statement of intent to transfer, confirming it is committed to reaching an agreement and completing the transfer, and the date for completion has been moved to December.
When the deal is finalised, the county council's 19 residential care homes will be managed jointly by The Order of St John Care Trust and Bedfordshire Pilgrims Housing Association.
The county council faced fierce opposition to the move, but said it could not afford to spend £20m upgrading the homes to meet room-size regulations that come into force in 2007. The transfer was seen as a way of unlocking sources of funding.
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