Closure of adult day centre service announced

A day centre service for elderly people is set to close after councillors judged it no longer financially sustainable.

Shropshire Council's cabinet approved plans to end the in-house adult day centre service at Helena Lane Community Centre in Ludlow on Wednesday, citing low attendance and rising costs.

Cabinet papers show the service operates for 12 hours a week and has a forecast annual running cost of £194,320, compared with income of £24,582.

The authority said other services based at Helena Lane would continue as normal and that support would be provided to those affected.

At Wednesday's meeting, councillors also approved plans to move day services for adults with learning disabilities from Aquamira in Shrewsbury to another facility nearby.

Ruth Houghton, the council's cabinet member for adult social care, said the decision over the Helena Lane service had been made with "genuine sadness and regret".

"We know how important the service at Helena Lane has been to the people who use it, and to their families and carers," she said.

"I really wish we didn't have to do this. However, cabinet has had to consider the significant financial challenges facing the council and whether the current model is sustainable in the long term, given the low utilisation and high running costs."

She said everyone affected would be offered a Care Act assessment and individual support plans to ensure their needs continued to be met.

"We may have agreed to close a service, but we remain absolutely committed to providing people with the care they need," she said.

The closure follows public consultation and recommendations from the council's Finance and Improvement Overview and Scrutiny Committee.

Separate plans affecting Aquamira in Shrewsbury were also approved by cabinet.

The council said the specialist service for adults with profound and multiple learning disabilities would transfer to Abbots Wood, around two-and-a-half miles away, after concerns about the high cost of running and maintaining the current building.

This was largely driven by its hydrotherapy pool, with repairs alone costing about £21,000 in 2024/25, according to the authority.

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