Dementia support service faces closure

A dementia support service used by hundreds of people each month should be scrapped because other similar services are available, a council has said.

At a meeting on Friday, Lincolnshire County Council heard The Memory Support Service was "duplicating" costs.

Martin Samuels, the council's executive director for adult care, said: "In this current financial context, we can't afford any duplication".

The contract for the service is due to expire at the end of June, and a final decision will be made in March.

The Memory Support Service, which has run since 2015, offers advice to people living with dementia and similar cognitive illnesses.

The service, provided by Lincolnshire Partnership Health Foundation on behalf of the council, costs £300,000 per year and 250 people are referred there every month.

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, councillors at the health committee meeting were told the cut was unlikely to cause extra pressure on the other services, but this would be monitored.

Samuels said: "There are a range of other council information and advice services which aren't specific to dementia but have capability to deliver this same role."

He denied the suggestion was political, saying: "I would be making this recommendation regardless of the political hue of the administration."

Reform committee members said they saw a good opportunity to cut duplication and save money, although others were unconvinced.

Independent councillor Marianne Overton pointed out that the council "didn't take the tax it could have in the budget".

Conservative councillor Sue Woolley said cutting a service that over 200 people relied on each month "didn't feel like a sensible idea".

A final decision will be made next month by Steve Clegg, the executive member for adult social care health.

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