Carmarthenshire’s Executive Board has withdrawn a proposal to close one of the council’s two respite homes for disabled children.
Members said that they could not ignore the ‘overwhelming’ response to the proposal, which had been included in a public budget consultation.
The proposal suggested that the council could save £200,000 annually by closing either Blaenau Respite Centre, in Ammanford, or Llys Caradog Respite Centre in Llanelli, and developing a respite service that could instead be provided at families’ homes.
Executive Board met today to discuss feedback from the consultation ahead of the Full Council meeting on February 19, where next year’s budget will be set.
Council Leader, Cllr Kevin Madge, said: “It had been proposed to concentrate provision of this highly-valued service on one of our two existing sites and to offer increased in-home respite support.
“However, the response to the consultation has been overwhelming and we have received strong representations from parents and carers, and I will be proposing that our two existing centres be retained.
“I know this was a proposal that none of us were entirely comfortable with right from the start and I would like to withdraw that item.”
Cllr Keith Davies, Executive Board Member for Children’s Services, added: “We were keen, from the very beginning, that people understood it was not a done deal, and following extensive feedback, I’m pleased that my colleagues on the Executive Board agreed it was not one we wanted to take any further.”
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