Click the headline or link below to read the rest of this story.
Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council has begun a consultation to scrap a £4.40 flat rate for transport, entry and a meal at the centres.
Instead, OAPs would pay £6.30 transport each way and £3 for meals. Day centre costs would be means tested. The council previously suggested a £23.60 flat rate for entry.
The plans, first reported by The Silhillian in October, would also end payments to people with learning disabilities to attend the centres.
And the council is also proposing to ask some people to pay more for their social care, such as home care.
The council said the changes were needed to meet rising demand and because of a cut in Government funding. It said the system would be “fairer”.
But Solihull Ratepayers’ Association branded the charges “excessive” and warned they will “lead to a big reduction in service take-up, effectively trapping them in their own homes”.
Secretary Trevor Eames told the council: “The reduced uptake is likely to lead to the closures of some day centres.”
He said: “We are conscious of the need to make economies and that in some areas it may be necessary to curtail services that may be regarded as desirable but not essential.
“However providing access to day care on an affordable basis is essential and there are other areas of the social support service budget where less damaging savings can and should be achieved.”
Mr Eames also hit out at “leading questions” in the consultation, in his letter to Leslie Heale, the council’s director for people,
One says: “How much do you agree or disagree that we should make the system fairer?”
A consultation pack sent to social services users is “complex and has greatly distressed clients, many of whom are unable to comprehend the detail provided,” he added.
And he said he was concerned about the future of the social services after the Care Quality Commission, the national regulator, rated Solihull ‘adequate’.
Mr Eames said: “The proposals in respect of the day care centre review are hardly likely to enhance Solihull’s future standing.”
Axing the payments to people with learning disabilities is “a small minded penny pinching measure” he added.
Of the three examples of how people would be affected given by the council in the consultation, two would be worse off each week.
A 35-year-old disabled woman would see her left with £101.81 compared to £165.76 before while an OAP would be on £253 instead of £301.95 (see this pdf, p11)
The council said nearby councils charge ‘similar’ amounts to the £6.30 transport and £3 meal proposals.
On meals it lists Warwickshire (£4), Staffordshire (£4.60) and Leicestershire (£3).
On transport it lists Warwickshire (£5.17), Birmingham (£1) and Worcestershire (£2.04).
The council said: “We are consulting about proposals to make sure the system for social care charges is the same for everybody and the process for assessing peoples’ ability to pay is clearer and simpler.
“Across the country, people have always made a contribution to the costs of their social care.
“However, we now need to reduce the amount we subsidise social care.
“This is because the government is significantly reducing the amount of money we have and we have more people needing services.
“We want to continue to provide services to as many people as possible.
“To do this we want to change the process so people are financially assessed and pay what they can afford to pay.”
It says: “We also want to make sure those that can’t afford to pay are subsidised
more than those who can afford to pay.”
The Silhillian has previously reported that the number of staff earning more than £50,000 at the council rose from 167 in 2008/09 to 194 in 2009/10.
Chief executive Mark Rogers’ pay rose from £120,000 to £123,000.
The total allowances bill for councillors rose from £491,000 to £527,000.
The consultation closes on March 31. Click here to respond. A decision is expected in June.
What do you think? Leave your comments below. No registration required.
Click here to get stories by email.
