Local people with learning disabilities deserve local care
16 November 2007
Green city councillors are calling for locally provided care to be prioritised for people with learning disabilities in the city.
Their call for local care follows revelations that the council is spending £8.2m on ‘out of city’ care in places as far away as Devon and North Wales.
The Council's new housing strategy for learning disabled people shows that the city spends twice the national average proportion of people outside the city on care.
The average cost of £1,303.25 per week per person is high by comparison with the national average.
Convenor of the Green group of councillors Keith Taylor, (pictured left) said, “A total of 121 people with learning disabilities are cared for outside the city.
"While 67% are in neighbouring authorities, 33% are as far away as Devon or Wales, which makes it very difficult for and expensive for families and friends to maintain contact with their loved ones or to be sure in their own minds that suitable care is provided.
“When we see acknowledged centres of excellence closing in Brighton and Hove, such as the Palmiera Project autistic care facility, and then learn that the council is paying over the odds for long-distance care, it’s clear that something is very wrong with policies which have led to our community's most vulnerable individuals being sent away to be cared for.
“We believe services should be provided locally for our residents and their families. It would help keep families together and save the council a small fortune.
"A ‘Local care is best care’ policy would create local jobs with the money earned staying in our own community."
The council's Learning Disability Housing Strategy, which runs from now until
2010, identifies four objectives:
* Delivering a better range of housing and support
* Providing high quality accommodation
* Providing local accommodation
* Offering housing and support for older people where appropriate
Key to the success of the strategy is a reduction residential care with
more people cared for in the community, but without any additional
funding.
"Greens are not convinced that redirecting existing resources and
greater use of state benefits will cover the costs," warned Cllr Taylor.
"particularly as the number of older people needing support is increasing
rapidly.
"We’ve experienced Tory care in the community policies in the past. Generally, they have been starved of resources and short on care.
"We fear that people with learning disabilities and their families will suffer from an under-financed strategy," he explained.
Notes to editors:
Journalists for more information please contact Lizzie Deane Brighton and Hove Green Party External Communications Officer on 07899 843206.[ENDS]
