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PLANS to modernise care services for Northumberland’s growing elderly population have been approved at a full Council meeting today Wednesday 4 November by Councillors from a range of parties.
As part of the plan to give residents a greater choice and control over their social activities it was agreed by County Council members to end council run day services at their remaining seven centres.
The transformation has come about from a review of the adult care service in line with the government’s policy paper ‘Putting People First’ published in 2007.
A major public consultation exercise undertaken over the summer period prompted hundreds of responses from people using the existing centres, as well as their families and community organisations. The feedback from everyone has helped shape plans that will see people presently using the centres continue to be given access to traditional day care in the future.
Individual meeting were also held with all service users and their families or carers to inform them about the process and ask how we can better meet their needs.
Simon Reed, Northumberland County Council Executive Member for Care and Wellbeing said “We welcome members’ commitment to modernise the adult care provision in Northumberland and realise that this has been an emotive issue and lengthy process but believe that we will open up an array of new opportunities for older people in their own communities.”
“We will continue to protect our vulnerable residents by providing them with a system where they can choose to undertake activities of their choice or, if they wish, to still go to traditional day care centre. “
The County Council invests nearly £1m each year in directly supporting 11 Age Concern day centres and six day care schemes run by other organisations which will continue to provide the traditional day care activities.
Simon added “The Council and Care trust have guaranteed that no centre provision will close until service users have a suitable alternative in place.
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