The sister of a man who uses a Brighton day centre threatened with closure is upset an influx of new government funding is unlikely to keep her brother and others at the service they have used for years.
After Prime Minister Andy Burnham announced plans to “fix” the social care system, Lou Vaughan said the vulnerable adults who use Wellington House are not receiving “dignity and support”.
Brighton and Hove City Council is due to decide on its proposal to close the centre in Wellington Street in September, with a special People Overview and Scrutiny Committee to discuss the recommendations on Friday 4 September.
Cabinet will then decide the centre’s future on Thursday 17 September.
A public consultation has been underway after the proposals to save £400,000 by closing the centre were voted through during the budget-setting process in February.
Families have been assured by senior councillors that the 21 vulnerable adults, mostly in their 40s, 50s and 60s, would be supported elsewhere.
Ms Vaughan noted in a comment piece (published by the Argus on Tuesday 4 August) that council leader Bella Sankey had described the existing system as one where people are “shunted between services and where too often vulnerable adults and their carers do not receive the dignity, support and reassurance they deserve”.
In her Argus column Councillor Sankey said: “We need an open and honest conversation about how things currently are, what needs to improve and the best and fairest model of funding adult social care into the future.
“As with any area of public policy, there are trade-offs. And it’s going to be vital to understand what people need and want to change in order to create the best system for ourselves.”
Ms Vaughan questioned how targeting a service offering “vulnerable and voiceless adults” displayed dignity and support.
She said: “There is NO reassurance from Brighton and Hove City Council that alternative placements will last, and no guarantee that our people won’t be moved on AGAIN, as has happened five times in the last 20 years.
“This is the very definition of ‘shunting people’. It also removes the support for service users and their families that you speak of providing.”
Save Wellington House Learning Disability Day Centre in Brighton and Hove on the Change.org website, calling on the council to protect the service has more than 3,700 signatures.
Ms Vaughan added: “With the increased core funding, and the £15m Exceptional Funding Grant awarded to Brighton and Hove City Council from the Government, it is baffling as to why the council still claims to need to save £400,000, displace 21 vulnerable adults and disproportionately impact future service users.
“No one has been able to explain this thus far.
“Councillor Sankey states that ‘we need an open and honest conversation about how things currently are, what needs to improve and the best and fairest model of funding adult social care into the future’.
“The people that use adult social care, their families and carers are best placed to have such conversations with, as they live the reality every day, and know best what their needs are.
“We, the Wellington House Parents and Carers Group, have suggestions about improving services at Wellington House, to encompass more of the community’s needs, as per Andy Burnham’s social care plan, rather than closing an essential community resource.
“We would welcome the opportunity to meet with Councillor Sankey to discuss them.”
The Special People Overview and Scrutiny Committee is due to meet at Hove Town Hall at 2pm on Friday 4 September. The meeting is scheduled for webcast.
