Mencap backs care battle (From Thisisdorset)

Mencap backs care battle

10:55am Saturday 9th February 2008

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A WEYMOUTH woman has won support from Mencap in her fight to save a care home from closure under Dorset County Council cutbacks.

Wendy Webb said the charity is backing her call to save the centre used by her brother, Paul Farrell, who has severe learning difficulties.

She said the charity's head of campaigns and appeals, David Congdon, wrote to urge the council not to close Blandford Learning Disability Day Centre until it had services in place that were as good or better.

And she claimed that the council would be offering an inferior alternative if it went ahead with the closure in April as recommended by its cabinet.

Mrs Webb, of Mohune Way, Chickerell, said Paul, 48, who lived in Weymouth until moving to Blandford three years ago, and other centre users would be devastated by the closure.

She said: "I find it offensive that they can say in that meeting that they have had a meaningful consultation.

"I feel we've been completely ignored for all that we've been doing for the past three months. I wouldn't say there's been any meaningful consultation.

"Closing that centre would be a grave injustice."

Mrs Webb said she had been upset and angry at the response of councillors to her efforts to save the centre.

She said one councillor told her that her brother would not notice the difference because he would not know what was going on.

She said: "I was so angry. Of course he would be affected.

"He wouldn't be able to use the centre any more except as some kind of assembly place where they would then have to go off and use facilities in the community.

"But he can't cope with that. He'll be so unhappy. He loves the centre, they all do."

She enlisted the help of Mencap and has the support of West Dorset MP Oliver Letwin in the fight for a reprieve at next week's full council meeting.

Mrs Webb claimed members of the council's community overview committee showed discrimination when it demanded a reprieve for several day centres for the elderly but recommended to the cabinet that the Blandford centre for people with learning disabilities should continue on its path to closure.

And she said she was outraged by the cabinet's action in recommending full council to do the same.

Mrs Webb and other campaigners are hoping that the full council will overturn the recommendation for closure when it meets on Thursday, February 14

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