The Chair informed the meeting that a note of thanks had been received from Ian Calder, Vice-Chair of Wallasey Sea Cadets. He had hoped to convey his thanks for a grant of £2,500 from ‘Your Wirral’ awarded at the last Constituency Committee meeting but didn’t have the opportunity. The Chair then read out the following:

“As you are aware, we are a charity and donations such as this are a lifeline and we are now very close to placing an order for the Jib Crane. I know that there are others "behind the scenes", such as Michelle Gray, who are always helpful, and thanks are due to all for a successful outcome”.

The Chair informed the meeting that one question had been received in advance of the meeting and this was reported below, together with the response.

Mr Meaney, Moreton

(Ref: AF128497)

Question:

“What on earth is the Council thinking of in relation to the closure of Girtrell Court. Once again an attack on the vulnerable and their families with no other options available for respite care. I believe this is the worse ever proposal made and would ask whether this Labour run Council is serious in their destruction of a safe haven for those with challenging problems. Please ensure that any excuse is not because of central government cuts as you are required to provide a service for those less fortunate and the Council have previously slashed funding to the service.”

Response from Graham Hodkinson, Director of Adult Social Services

“The Director met with families of people that use the service at Girtrell Court on Friday 22 January to answer questions in relation to the Girtrell Court proposal this is being followed up by every family being met individually in relation to the consultation and to review their needs.

It is fully understood that at this stage of consultation people are feeling upset and it is very important to be clear about the process and to share information as well as to hear people’s views

It is fully recognised that people that use Girtrell Court and their families value the service, and the relationships they have built up with the staff there over the years. The proposal has not been made lightly.

The Council does, however have a very significant reduction in its grant and has to save a large amount of money. Adult Social Care is one of the biggest areas of spend that the Council has. Nevertheless this proposal is about making sure that needs are properly met from a reducing pot of money.

The Council runs Girtrell Court at high cost - around £1400 per week for each bed (£1.5M). By commissioning services from a range of other providers the Council can save a total of £500,000 and still reinvest an average of £1000 per week per family for respite or holiday support. In effect we can buy the same or better quality services and certainly offer a broader range of choice from the independent and voluntary sector. This level of investment in one place also means that there are limited resources to provide alternative respite facilities for people should they want something else. 

This is still providing excellent care and helps the council get better value at a time when every budget is being massively reduced. When we have the opportunity to ensure the same service for less money we cannot ignore it.”

The Chair then invited questions from the audience.

David Jones, Unison Steward and resident of New Brighton addressed the Committee and expressed concern for the 46 staff employed at Girtrell Court as well as at the impact on those families who were service users. He disputed the validity of the figures from the Director of Adult Social Services. Over 1,000 nights of respite care were provided per year and it was also a home for six people. He suggested that this would be a very rushed decision and the impact on individuals would be devastating.

Other members of the audience outlined further concerns about the Girtrell Court proposal including:

·  The list of alternative homes to look at on the Wirral, none of which were suitable due to the ages of most of those using Girtrell Court.

·  The list of alternative homes suggested included homes for people with dementia when those who used Girtrell Court were not dementia sufferers.

·  Alternative suggestions for homes currently had minimal numbers of vacancies.

Relatives of some of those using the services or resident at Girtrell Court gave personal and moving testimonies of the care and support their loved ones received there.

The Chair thanked the members of the public for their comments and reminded everyone that the consultation closed on Friday, 29 January and urged everyone to take part. The findings of the consultation would be reported to Cabinet on 22 February and also to the Policy and Performance Coordinating Committee on 16 February.

Councillor Blakeley expressed his support for those seeking to retain Girtrell Court. He had asked the Director of Adult Social Services for a cost benefit analysis of the facility but was still awaiting a response. He queried the £500,000 savings figure when the initial savings proposal referred to a figure of £155,000. He asked the Cabinet Member for Adult Care and Public Health to comment.

Councillor Chris Jones stated that the consultation was still open and no decisions had yet been taken. She referred to savings made during the previous Conservative Council administration when five homes had been closed.

Rev. Father Leon Ostaszewski asked about the Bus Stop road markings and vehicles parking on Belvidere Road and the road surfaces on several side roads in the area. He also referred to the proposed artwork for the medallion structures at the ‘gateways’ into Liscard Way. The Constituency Manager responded that she had not yet been able to identify an electronic version of the designs in order to obtain a quotation for the work.

Councillor Leah Fraser referred to the pavements in Grove Road being re-tarmacked but that work on Belvidere Road had had to be redone. She also explained the criteria for the filling of potholes.

Councillor Ron Abbey referring to the bus stop for the 409 explained that this was not a Merseytravel issue as the issue of vehicles parking at the bus stop should be dealt with by the police or by highways enforcement.

Inspector McIver clarified that if vehicles were causing an obstruction then it was a police matter but if vehicles were parking on double yellow lines then it was a Council highways enforcement matter.