More than 100 care workers’ jobs in balance after adult day centres closure decision

More than 100 care workers’ jobs hang in the balance following the decision to close eight Derbyshire adult day centres, including Carter Lane in Shirebrook, as union chiefs fear the council is merely paying ‘lip service’ to workers’ concerns.

The move by the council’s Conservative cabinet to close eight day centres for adults with disabilities and learning difficulties leaves 105 employees in limbo and, with only 42 roles likely to be created within the wider service, means 63 staff members will potentially be looking for work.

The decision flew in the face of the outcome of a public consultation earlier in the year, in which 81 per cent of the 696 respondents disagreed with the proposals, prompting comments from the opposition that the survey was a ‘tick-box’ exercise.

The council will now commence a formal consultation with trade unions and staff.

However, speaking at a protest outside of the council, Jeanette Lloyd, Unison Derbyshire branch secretary, said she was concerned the authority was just paying ‘lip service’ to the views of its employees.

She said: “My concern is if they haven’t supported the public consultation, what notice are they going to take of a staff consultation?”

The Learning Disability Day Opportunities Service Redesign pushes service users towards the use of ‘Community Connectors’ to identify job and volunteer opportunities, but concerns have been raised that this support will be insufficient for many.

Ms Lloyd stressed, despite the threat to their livelihoods, staff were ‘more concerned about their service users’ than themselves.

“A lot of these service users have been going to the same centres for years and years, the carers are extensions of their families,” she said.

Coun Natalie Hoy, council cabinet member for adult services, told the meeting: “I can assure you all staff that could be affected have been kept up to date and we will continue to support them. We highly value our dedicated our skilled staff.”

In approving the plans, cabinet members celebrated the move towards a new way of delivering services that provides people a greater variety of opportunities by moving away from traditional day centres.