Many of us will have a friend or family member who has a learning disability, so our story this week will resonate with lots of us.
The Cherry Garden Day Centre provides an incredible service to its clients. People who are normally stuck at home with parents and carers, often themselves elderly, get the chance to spend time with friends and learn important independence skills.
Sadly, centres like these are becoming a rarity. In Southwark alone, recent decades have seen the closure of centres in Surrey Quays, Braganza Street, Tower Bridge Road and, most recently, Queen’s Road Peckham. And now Cherry Garden could shut.
http://southwarknews.co.uk/news/community/driving-hope-for-christmas-bermondsey-day-centre-needs-a-minibus-or-faces-closure/
It’s easy to point the finger at the council. Indeed, you have to ask why it gave manager Gemma the go-ahead to run the centre if it wasn’t willing to give her the minibus needed to stay afloat.
But really, there is a deeper malaise at the heart of this – that adult social care has been neglected for decades and now we’re paying the price.
The 1.5 million UK citizens with learning disabilities are often described as “politically invisible”. They are underrepresented in the media and public life so, when it comes to policy, they are often forgotten about. We know the government is set on making “tough choices” over the coming months and it seems increasingly likely these decisions will be at the expense of our most vulnerable citizens – yet again.
Donate to their fundraiser at: gofundme.com/f/adults-with-disabilities-access
http://southwarknews.co.uk/featured/where-can-i-get-a-christmas-meal-this-week-in-southwark/