Adult social care shake-up 'rethink' after protest
Plans to shake-up adult social care in Dorset are being "re-evaluated" following protests and feedback from users and their families, a council has said.
Dorset Council is considering changes to adult social care services at six centres in Blandford, Swanage, Wareham, Ferndown, Shaftesbury and Sherborne.
About 100 people staged a protest opposite one of the centres - Blandford Community Centre - in May, against the proposed reorganisation of where and how services are delivered amid fears some of the centres could close.
Dorset Council said it wanted to move to a "hubs and spokes" model but insisted "no decisions have been made". A consultation runs until Monday.
North Dorset Conservative MP Simon Hoare said the centre in Blandford should be left out of any reorganisation.
"It's easy for people to get to, it serves not just the town but the villages around it," he explained.
"We have the hub and spoke model, it's working. My view is - if it ain't broke, don't fix it."
Pauline Saville, from Blandford, has a grown up son with learning disabilities who has received day care in Blandford for about 20 years.
She said it was "vital" the service was protected and not moved to Sturminster Newton, as proposed.
"It's very important to my son. It's where his friends are... If he didn't have it he'd be at home vegetating, and it's vital for me because it's my respite."
Councillor Steve Robinson, cabinet member for adult social care at Dorset Council, said it was now "re-evaluating" its initial proposals.
"The opportunity that people have got at the moment to contribute [to the consultation] online, the demonstration that we've had, or the letters that we've received, all go in and inform the decision making process," he explained.
"This is not about what happens with our buildings, this is about how we provide services for people in our community."
He added all consultation responses would be considered throughout June and July ahead of a decision in the autumn.
'Save vital day centre for wife who has dementia'
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