Thanks again everyone for the wonderful support. It is hard to keep fighting alone but now I have rallied a few resident's relatives behind me and with your support in addition, I'm ready for battle!.
Last night my friend came round with Friday and Saturday evening's local newspapers. On Friday my letter lead the letters page with a large heading 'Who will save our Care Homes?' and they had printed my long letter in full. My friend said she had never seen such a long letter in the letters page! (Always have been 'long winded!')
On Saturday there was a full report from one of their reporters in the local newspaper with quotes from my letter. It was headed ' Major Review Launched Into Council's Last Two Care Homes' The reporter had interviewed the Director of Social Services (salary of £116K per year) who stated "I can give a cast iron promise that people who are in these homes will continue to live there for as long as they want".
Today at the Care Home ALL the staff came and thanked me for the letter and another resident's daughter said she will come along to the meeting tomorrow night where we can speak to the Councillor responsible for this review. So three of us, one son, one daughter and myself are now going to the meeting. I've also got permission from 4 other resident's families to speak on their behalf at the meeting.
We will be asking some very hard questions of this councillor. For example:
*What reason is causing you to instigate this major review in view of the fact that Director of Social Services has stated in the local newpaper of Saturday 2nd July, "I can give a cast iron promise that people who are in these homes will continue to live there for as long as they want".
*Can you as the lead councillor in this review, categorically give this statement by the Director od SS your agreement and assure us that residents will not be moved at some future date?
*Obviously you must have some changes in mind or you would not be conducting this review. Second guessing these changes is problematic as we have no information whatsoever about any changes you are thinking of but, in view of the review and the 'concrete promise' that residents will not be moved, what will happen if you decide for example to change the use of the building but still allow existing residents to live there i.e., if it became a respite centre, or a day care facility? This would not be a suitable arrangement for our relatives who need very specialist, intensive, 24 hour care in a very stable environment.
We appreciate that the ways of caring for the disabled change as government policies change. We understand that the government has implemented policies to ensure that more and more disabled people are to be cared for in their own home setting but by the very nature of dementia, which our relative suffer from, this will not always be possible, no matter what government policies are in place. So we are at a loss to understand why you are considering “the current and future demand and capacity required across the LA” with regard to the above care homes which specialize in residential dementia care . Are you on the headlong path to privatise our health and care services and using the above phrase to justify this?
*Why are you saying that the review is necessary to ensure 'value for money' when surely you already have yearly breakdowns of the costs year in and year out for many years? You already know the alternatives to running the two care homes and surely must have already done a breakdown of costs between placing people in private care homes and placing them in council run care homes so what will the review achieve that you do not already know?
*In view of the fact that we are constantly told there is an increasingly aging population, have you not already got facts and figures which tell you what the future demography and demand for such facilities as these two homes will be without the upset to us relatives and prospective upset to residents this review has and will cause?
If anyone here on TP can think of other questions I should be asking, please do let me know.
xxTinaT