Latest news with #learningdifficulties
BBC News
5 days ago
- Health
- BBC News
Adult day centres in Powys to close with families left disappointed
Day centres in parts of Powys will close after the council confirmed plans to reorganise services for adults with additional day centres in Llanidloes, Ystradgynlais and Brecon, which all offer services to adults with disabilities or learning difficulties from 18 will shut. The centres are described by families as a "necessary resource" that eases the burden on council said services will be provided in different ways, "either through supported living providers or from other venues". Taylor Johnson, 20, has been attending Sylfaen Day Centre in Llanidloes for two years. Her mum Nicola Barrett said "it's important to her". "They want to make it more community based but there's nowhere for people like Taylor," she said. "I don't know what the future holds for her really in being able to access the community and seeing her peers."She's just going to be plunged back into isolation with me again and that's going to have an effect on her mental health and her understanding of why she's stuck at home with me."The council is finding new ways of providing services, which are currently provided through a mixture of statutory services and support from the third sector, with the aim of saving £277,000. The day centres are a paid service, with families describing low numbers as an essential part of the one-to-one care that many users Davies' brother Gareth, 36, also attends the day centre and describes the decision as "morally wrong"."Gareth has autism and any routine change really disrupts him. Mental health is supposed to be protected and Gareth looks forward to it," he said."He goes there to see his friends - it's the highlight of his week."Powys council said that the reorganisation of services will see the creation of five hubs in Welshpool, Newtown, Llandrindod Wells, Brecon and Ystradgynlais - with an outreach service provided from the hubs to their surrounding Cabinet Member for a Caring Powys Sian Cox said the new model "will deliver increased capacity in key areas and provide a more flexible and sustainable approach to supporting people to meet the outcomes that are important to them".
Yahoo
25-07-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Failure to act on 999 call by authorities led to death of malnourished teenager and unwell mother
A teenager with learning difficulties would not have died if an ambulance had been sent to her home following a 999 call made three months before her body was found, a coroner has said. The bodies of Loraine Choulla, aged 18, and her mother Alphonsine Djiako Leuga were both discovered on May 21 last year at their home in Hartley Road, Radford, Nottingham. A week-long inquest heard that Loraine, who had Down's syndrome, was 'entirely dependent' on her mother, who had made a 999 call giving her address and postcode and asking for help on February 2 last year, while feeling unwell. During the 999 call, made shortly after 1pm on February 2, Ms Leuga groaned, requested an ambulance and said 'I need help to my daughter' and 'I'm in the bed, I feel cold and can't move' before cutting off the line. East Midlands Ambulance Service (EMAS) did not send an ambulance to the address after the call was wrongly classed as being abandoned by the caller, the inquest at Nottingham Coroner's Court was told. Summing up the evidence and recording her conclusion on Friday, Nottingham Assistant Coroner Amanda Bewley said 47-year-old Ms Leuga, who born in Cameroon, had frequently refused to answer calls and had gone away for periods of longer than a month. The coroner said she was 'astonished' that Ms Leuga and her daughter were found after a member of the public contacted police after noticing he had not seen them for a lengthy period, rather than by professionals between February and May. After adding that the city council's adult social care department had 'missed opportunities to intervene' and potentially secure a different outcome, the coroner added: 'I am entirely satisfied that had EMAS sent an ambulance to Alphonsine that Loraine would not have died when she died. 'She would most probably still be alive. 'I am clear that Alphonsine died first and Loraine died afterwards.' Ms Leuga died from pneumonia between February 2 and February 8, the coroner recorded, while Loraine had died from dehydration and malnutrition and 'survived her mother by three weeks or more'. The coroner added that she was 'confident to a point of near certainty' that had an ambulance been sent to the address on February 2, Loraine would have been discovered and arrangements made for her needs to be met. The inquest was told that Ms Leuga was admitted to hospital for a blood transfusion in late January last year as she was critically ill with very low iron levels, and was given a 'pragmatic' discharge linked to her daughter's care needs. Pathologist Dr Stuart Hamilton told the hearing by video-link that the mother and daughter were both likely to have been dead for 'weeks to months' before they were found, rather than for days or hours. Dr Hamilton said his initial cause of death following a post-mortem examination on Ms Leuga was pneumonia of uncertain cause, while her daughter's cause of death could not be established. Answering questions from the coroner, the pathologist said he could not rule out that Ms Leuga had died on the day of the 999 call. The body of Loraine, who was born in Italy, showed no evidence of any third party involvement. Dr Hamilton said of the teenager: 'Unfortunately, based on the post-mortem examination and additional tests alone, it is my view that the cause of death is classed as unascertained – that is, I am not able to give a cause of death on the balance of probabilities.' In a statement issued after the inquest, Keeley Sheldon, director of quality at EMAS, said: 'I am truly sorry that we did not respond as we should have to Alphonsine Djiako Leuga and Loraine Choulla. 'Our deepest condolences remain with their family. 'We fully accept the coroner's findings. After our internal investigation, we made changes to our policies, procedures and training to ensure this does not happen in future.'
The Independent
25-07-2025
- Health
- The Independent
Failure to act on 999 call by authorities led to death of malnourished teenager and unwell mother
A teenager with learning difficulties would not have died if an ambulance had been sent to her home following a 999 call made three months before her body was found, a coroner has said. The bodies of Loraine Choulla, aged 18, and her mother Alphonsine Djiako Leuga were both discovered on May 21 last year at their home in Hartley Road, Radford, Nottingham. A week-long inquest heard that Loraine, who had Down's syndrome, was 'entirely dependent' on her mother, who had made a 999 call giving her address and postcode and asking for help on February 2 last year, while feeling unwell. During the 999 call, made shortly after 1pm on February 2, Ms Leuga groaned, requested an ambulance and said 'I need help to my daughter' and 'I'm in the bed, I feel cold and can't move' before cutting off the line. East Midlands Ambulance Service (EMAS) did not send an ambulance to the address after the call was wrongly classed as being abandoned by the caller, the inquest at Nottingham Coroner's Court was told. Summing up the evidence and recording her conclusion on Friday, Nottingham Assistant Coroner Amanda Bewley said 47-year-old Ms Leuga, who born in Cameroon, had frequently refused to answer calls and had gone away for periods of longer than a month. The coroner said she was 'astonished' that Ms Leuga and her daughter were found after a member of the public contacted police after noticing he had not seen them for a lengthy period, rather than by professionals between February and May. After adding that the city council's adult social care department had 'missed opportunities to intervene' and potentially secure a different outcome, the coroner added: 'I am entirely satisfied that had EMAS sent an ambulance to Alphonsine that Loraine would not have died when she died. 'She would most probably still be alive. 'I am clear that Alphonsine died first and Loraine died afterwards.' Ms Leuga died from pneumonia between February 2 and February 8, the coroner recorded, while Loraine had died from dehydration and malnutrition and 'survived her mother by three weeks or more'. The coroner added that she was 'confident to a point of near certainty' that had an ambulance been sent to the address on February 2, Loraine would have been discovered and arrangements made for her needs to be met. The inquest was told that Ms Leuga was admitted to hospital for a blood transfusion in late January last year as she was critically ill with very low iron levels, and was given a 'pragmatic' discharge linked to her daughter's care needs. Pathologist Dr Stuart Hamilton told the hearing by video-link that the mother and daughter were both likely to have been dead for 'weeks to months' before they were found, rather than for days or hours. Dr Hamilton said his initial cause of death following a post-mortem examination on Ms Leuga was pneumonia of uncertain cause, while her daughter's cause of death could not be established. Answering questions from the coroner, the pathologist said he could not rule out that Ms Leuga had died on the day of the 999 call. The body of Loraine, who was born in Italy, showed no evidence of any third party involvement. Dr Hamilton said of the teenager: 'Unfortunately, based on the post-mortem examination and additional tests alone, it is my view that the cause of death is classed as unascertained – that is, I am not able to give a cause of death on the balance of probabilities.' In a statement issued after the inquest, Keeley Sheldon, director of quality at EMAS, said: 'I am truly sorry that we did not respond as we should have to Alphonsine Djiako Leuga and Loraine Choulla. 'Our deepest condolences remain with their family. 'We fully accept the coroner's findings. After our internal investigation, we made changes to our policies, procedures and training to ensure this does not happen in future.'
BBC News
24-07-2025
- Health
- BBC News
Manningtree care home closes after CQC put it in special measures
A care home that looked after six people with learning difficulties and autism will close after it was put in special measures by a watchdog. Meadowcroft Residential Care Home near Manningtree, Essex, was inspected by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) between 8 May to 6 June and four breaches of regulations were found relating to person-centred care, safety, consent and governance. The CQC added works to build a seven-bedroomed extension to the site had left the building's "big garden" too "dangerous" for people living in the home to use. All residents of the care home were in the process of transitioning to new homes with the support of staff, the CQC said. The CQC found the renovation plans had not been explained to the residents, who had previously been able to grow vegetables in the said the demolition work for the extension had created significant disruption and some residents had already moved out due to the added that two other people had moved to the provider's sister service because of the works, which was not registered to meet the needs of their learning disability. A CQC spokesperson said: "The provider also told us they would no longer be providing a specialist service for people with a learning disability and or autistic people at Meadowcroft, but there was no clear progression planning in place for people who may need to move out of the home."A Meadowcroft Residential Care Home spokesperson said: "Following the CQC inspection, all building work was halted." Safety concerns Safety concerns were also raised in the report after inspectors found that a cupboard with hazardous cleaning supplies had been left unlocked and a resident was a known to be at risk of consuming non-food items such as toiletries. The report said the provider did not always listen to concerns about safety and did not always investigate and report safety events . A family member said they found bruises around their loved ones eye when they came to meet them, which had not been communicated to her prior her visit.A staff member told inspectors: "We have the residents who get the odd bruise from somewhere, they have scratched themselves. No major issues." The report also stated that there was a "calm" and "settled dynamic" between people living at the care home and one resident said they were happy at the home.A spokesperson from Meadowcroft Residential Care Home said: "At Meadowcroft, the well-being and comfort of our residents has always been, and will continue to be, our highest priority. "While we are deeply disappointed that our efforts to enhance and improve our facilities have led to this outcome, we remain fully committed to providing the highest standard of care throughout our residents' transition to their new homes, most of which will be completed by this Friday." Follow Essex news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
BBC News
15-07-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Eastbourne day centre saved after council U-turn on closure
East Sussex County Council has backtracked on plans to close a day centre for adults with autism and learning council previously said it had "reluctantly" looked at shutting Linden Court, in Eastbourne, as demand outstripped available on Tuesday, councillors agreed to reduce the capacity from 45 places each day to 25, which "meets its current usage", instead of closing the council said the reduction in places saved £145,000 but it now needed to make £182,000 of cuts elsewhere instead. There are currently 44 people regularly attending the day service, with around 60% of available spaces filled. Evening sessions have a lower attendance, about 10%.The service had been marked for closure but it was feared that could lead to some clients moving into full-time residential care, the Local Democracy Reporting Service officers highlighted in a report that the average cost of residential care for a high-needs individual would come to about £75, said it meant that even if just three clients moved into residential care, it would reduce the overall £327,000 saving by around £225, light of this, the council has chosen to keep the service running, but with a reduced had previously declared it was in its "worst financial situation ever" and needed to cut nearly £4m from its adult social care budget for 2025/26.
