Clarity call over future of under-review day centres

Five elderly day care centres in Lancashire which remain under threat of closure should be given "the same assurance" offered to five full-time care homes recently saved from shutting down, a councillor has said.

The county council had been considering proposals to shut them all after concerns about "significantly poor condition" of the premises, prompting protests from some residents.

The Reform-controlled authority, which launched a public consultation on the proposals, later announced in January they would not close five care homes.

Council leader Stephen Atkinson said a decisions had not yet been made on the future of the day centres.

He said they "had to bring forward" the announcement on the care homes to stop what he claimed was "scaremongering" about their future.

"The day centres are a different thing to the home you live in – it's a different magnitude of concern," he said.

However, Conservative councillor Adam Brierley said: "The news about the care homes is to be welcomed – residents, staff and families can now sleep at night.

"But staff and users of the day centres are now panicking more than ever – they don't know why they haven't had the same assurance.

"I've spoken to people who will have to put relatives into care homes if the day centre shuts.

"I know a lady who works full time and whose mother goes to Milbanke Day Centre and she couldn't cope if she lost access to that.

"The county council has done the right thing with care homes – now it needs to do the same for the day centres.

"My message to Reform is that if they think the campaign has gone away, we're not going anywhere until the day centres are also saved."

The day centres being looked at are Byron View in Colne, The Derby Centre in Ormskirk, Milbanke Day Centre in Kirkham, Teal Close in Thornton Cleveleys and Vale View in Lancaster.

Formal decisions are expected to be made in April.

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