Brighton day centre for vulnerable adults is set to close

Senior councillors have agreed to close Wellington House day centre, in Brighton, although no date has been set yet.

The decision was made by Brighton and Hove City Council’s cabinet, affecting 21 of the most vulnerable adults in the area.

Dozens of parents, carers and union representatives protested outside Hove Town Hall before the cabinet met today (Thursday 17 September) in a final attempt to stop the closure.

The council aims to save £336,000 – less than the £400,000 a year that it budgeted – by moving 19 of the 21 clients to day centre services run by independent providers.

Two people are expected to move into full-time supported accommodation.

Green councillor Raphael Hill spoke against the closure, describing Wellington House as a community offering a lifeline for families.

Councillor Hill said: “This is a community that is cherished by extremely vulnerable people who’ve struggled at other similar services and found a home away from home there.

“The relationships that make the community that is Wellington House aren’t relationships you can just end and then expect service users to adapt easily to totally different relationships.

“If it is the case that dignity for these people is the priority then I would ask that you listen to the families of service users who are protesting this decision today.”

Labour councillor Mitchie Alexander, the council’s cabinet member for adult social care, said that she had visited alternative providers and saw the same level of love and care offered to the people using those services.

She said that the proposed closure was open-ended as each of the people moving on would receive an individual “person-centred” transition plan.

These plans would take into account people’s individual needs, preferences and their friendships, she said.

Councillor Alexander told her colleagues: “Not one of us in the council, whether it’s a council officer or one of us cabinet members, wants to see people upset, especially a cohort of people who are so vulnerable and who may fear change and not really understand why change is happening to them.

“I do not enjoy having to make a decision that will be upsetting and confusing for some but I have to say it’s my duty as a cabinet member to ensure that we move forward in a sustainable way.”

She said that the service users would have a review six weeks after starting a new placement.

The Labour deputy leader of the council, Jacob Taylor, said that he had taken the decision very seriously and had met people from his Moulsecoomb and Bevendean ward who were potential future users of Wellington House to discuss their needs.

As the council’s finance lead, he accepted the real cost of social care had increased substantially and the council needed to allocate its resources effectively.

Councillor Taylor said: “Huge amounts of money are now going into the system but we still know there are huge problems and that’s where the government is looking to address it.

“But within that context, what we have to do as a council is make – not hard-headed – but make compassionate and sensible decisions about how we use our precious resources for the best outcomes for our residents.”

Council leader Bella Sankey said: “We are doing proper and detailed and person-centred transition planning.”

Councillor Sankey said that the service was “highly regarded” and this had “come through so clearly in the feedback”.

She said: “The professionalism and the commitment of our staff that currently work at Wellington House are also recognised and how challenging this process has been for them, for our service users, for their families and loved ones.”

While the closure proposal generated a great deal of discussion, it emerged that councillors did not appear to have approached directly those running the two main special schools.

Councillor Alexander said that when young people reached the age when they became eligible to use the services at Wellington House, they had tended to opt for other providers.

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