A Plaid Cymru MS has raised the issue of reduced day centre access for disabled adults on the floor of the Senedd.
Peredur Owen Griffiths told fellow Members of the Senedd that cuts to provision introduced by the Labour-controlled Caerffili County Borough Council had been “devastatingly detrimental for disabled adults and their families.”
Peredur called on the First Minister to issue guidance to local authorities and monitor whether councils are fulfilling their statutory obligations and whether enough funding is in place. Mark Drakeford responded by saying: “In the end, these are local decisions made by those people who are closest to the communities that they serve, taking into account, as I'm sure Caerphilly Council does, the views of its own local residents.”
During his question, Peredur said: “I want to highlight the reduced day-care provision for disabled adults in Caerphilly County Borough. For some, hours have been reduced from 30 hours a week to just six, an 80 per cent reduction in support which has been devastatingly detrimental for disabled adults and their families.
“The Plaid Cymru group on the council have now called for a moratorium on these changes. A few days ago, I spoke to a father who is having to consider putting his son into residential care as he and his wife can no longer cope.
“Not only would this be harrowing for all concerned, but it would end up costing the local authority significantly more than if they kept the full-time day care provision growing.”
He added: “First Minister, is there guidance that your Government can issue to local authorities in order to ensure that disabled adults and their families get the support and respite they deserve, that they need, and that is right for them?
“Is anyone in Government monitoring whether local government authorities are fulfilling their statutory obligation concerning disabled people and whether adequate funding is in place for them to do so?”
In response, the First Minister said: “Llywydd, I've followed the recent debate about day care services in Caerphilly and I'm quite sure that those responsible for making those difficult decisions will have been listening carefully to what the Member has said today and to the views of their local communities.
“The Welsh Government does indeed provide guidance on all of these matters and monitors local authority spending through a complex variety of routes, including in the social services field.
“In the end, these are local decisions made by those people who are closest to the communities that they serve, taking into account, as I'm sure Caerphilly Council does, the views of its own local residents.”
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