PROPOSALS to close a vital facility for adults is 'riding rough shod' over some of the most vulnerable people living in Ryedale campaigners have claimed.
North Yorkshire Council’s executive will vote on whether to shut the Cauwood Day Service in Malton at a meeting next week.
Concerns have been raised about the impact closing the facility would have on vulnerable users with a campaign launched to fight to save Cauwood and petition attracting over 1,500 signatures of support from across Ryedale.
However, senior officers who are recommending the centre is closed, say the current service, which supports adults with learning disabilities, autism and physical and sensory needs, is no longer sustainable.
They have highlighted a sharp fall in demand in recent years, rising costs and the poor condition of the building as reasons for the closure.
According to a report prepared for the meeting, the cost of delivering the service is now around double the market average, while the ageing building requires an estimated £314,000 of repairs within the next two years to maintain safe standards.
The council says users of the service would not lose support due to the closure.
Councillor Michael Harrison, executive member for health and adult services, said that a closure would only take place once replacement support was in place, including tailored care packages where needed and a new community-based service centred around a local hub in the Malton area.
He said: “We recognise that Cauwood Day Service is highly valued by people who use the service, their families and carers, particularly for the consistency, stability, trusted relationships and social opportunities it provides.”
If the closure goes ahead, the authority hopes to retain the centre’s 12 permanent staff wherever possible.
The day centre currently supports eight people.
Despite the assurances, Caroline Garrod, whose daughter Natasha attends Cauwood, said she was “deeply upset” that the proposal differed from what she had discussed with senior council officers last week.
She said: “It appears that the option they are wanting to push on us is in fact community-based.
“Before I agree to anything else, I want to know where the building is. It’s like they are dangling this as a carrot, wanting us to agree.
“Giving us half of the information is totally unacceptable. This report does not give me the answers I need.”
Councillor Steve Mason, member for the Amotherby and Ampleforth division, who secured an extraordinary scrutiny meeting to discuss the potential closure last week, welcomed a pledge to maintain the centre until the replacement service was in place.
But he added: “The new proposal for the future of Cauwood still feels like it is trying to please everyone at once.
“I have to ask whether simply keeping the ‘Cauwood’ name, while seeking approval to dismantle this gold-standard specialist hub and replace it with a vague ‘touchdown’ community space before we have a confirmed location and clinical guarantees, is acceptable.”
Norton councillor Keane Duncan, who organised a petition to save the centre, said it was “welcome news” that Cauwood was now expected to continue as a service, retaining its staff in a new building in the Malton area.
He added: “The original proposal in April was to close Cauwood without consultation and without a replacement centre. We said that was unacceptable and that the people who depend on this lifeline deserved to be heard.
“We were able to stop that decision, securing a full consultation and taking our campaign into the community, with more than 1,500 people backing our petition.
“However, questions remain about the detail of the proposals and we are seeking further assurances from the council before its final decision next week.”
Mayor of Norton Cllr Si Keal said: "In its plan to close Cauwood Day Centre North Yorkshire Council is riding rough shod over some of the most vulnerable people living in Ryedale and actively choosing to ignore their individual needs for high quality person-centred care.
"The report recommending closure is smoke and mirrors - promises of an 'anchor building base and touchdown space' are as meaningless as they are insulting to service users as they give no concrete evidence of what or where this facility might be.
"This is closure by stealth - putting the councils ambition to develop the Cauwood and Ashfield site above the needs of the local people with a variety of disabilities and complex needs.
"What we need to see is a cast iron guarantee in writing from North Yorkshire Council that Cauwood will stay fully operational until such time as a new purpose built facility that will become the 'new Cauwood' is in place. Anything less will not be accepted by those who have fought so hard to save this much loved and much needed day centre."