Elderly care faces £6bn shortfall

Every working family could face paying an "ageing tax" to provide care for the elderly, Gordon Brown proposed yesterday.

The ageing tax is a central plank of a six month consultation launched by the Prime Minister in the face of a growing crisis over who should meet the bills for the care of the elderly.

The Daily Mail reports that this new tax would take the form of a compulsory levy to force people to cover the cost of care home places in the last stages of their lives.

The introduction of such a tax would reignite questions, most recently provoked over charges for rubbish collections, about what exactly people pay Council Tax for - if all the services that it's supposed to cover have to be paid for over again.

According to the BBC report, Gordon Brown says that the care system in England alone faces a £6bn shortfall within 20 years. An amount that just happens to be exactly the same as our new net annual contribution to the EU's leaky budget, which Gordon Brown agreed to following a deal done by Tony Blair in December 2005.

The PM claims that the Treasury cannot pay the fast-rising cost of care homes and home help as the number of elderly people increases, and that the system now needs a 'radical shake up' to avoid this cash crunch.

But another possible solution could be that, rather than force everyone to pay yet another tax, we stop wasting billions of pounds a year on the EU, the "majority" of whose spending has been a mystery to its auditors for 13 years in a row.

Why won't Gordon Brown consider stopping this blatant waste of exactly the amount of money he needs, in order to prevent elderly care services deteriorating or hitting people with yet more taxes?

The new consultation paper was launched by Mr Brown in a talk at the King's Fund, the research group that published the 2006 report on the cost of ageing by Sir Derek Wanless.

Sir Derek estimated that an extra £10billion is needed to make the care system work properly, but there was only a token £31million of new money on offer yesterday - just under two days worth of what the Government is prepared to hand the EU. A terrible example of the government's warped priorities with scarce public funds.

Yesterday's consultation paper, endorsed by Mr Brown and seven Cabinet ministers, put back any decisions until next year.

Councils turn backs on care for older people

In the same week as MPs voted in favour of gifting the audit-failing European Union a massive and unjustifiable increase in funding of £7bn, it has been revealed that nearly three-quarters of local authorities in England are rationing social services to exclude tens of thousands of vulnerable people from help with the basic tasks of daily living.

The Guardian reports today that official figures obtained by the charity Mencap reveal the worsening plight of people who cannot wash, dress, prepare a meal or go to the shops unaided - a growing problem this blog has been recording now for more than a year.

It said the problem affected older people and adults with learning disabilities in areas where cash-strapped councils have decided they can no longer afford to provide services to everyone in need.

The information, from the Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI), found 73% of local authorities were planning to refuse care to everyone whose needs were not considered to be "substantial".

The government's definition of substantial covers people who "cannot carry out the majority of their personal care or domestic routines" and do not have anyone available to provide voluntary help.

It excludes people with "moderate" needs who may not be able to carry out several daily routines such as getting up in the morning, bathing and doing the washing up.

The CSCI found four local authorities intending to ration services even more tightly to provide care only to people whose needs are "critical".

Under this definition, people would not get support unless their life was in danger or they were at risk of serious abuse or neglect.

The four were Northumberland, Surrey, West Berkshire and Wokingham councils. They are about to be joined by the London borough of Harrow, which yesterday defended plans to tighten its eligibility criteria at a judicial review in the high court.

Dame Jo Williams, chief executive of Mencap, said: "These figures show the true extent of the crisis in social care. It is unacceptable in the UK in the 21st century that local authorities are refusing support to very vulnerable people with a learning disability who have no one else to turn to.

"Last month the government gave an increase of less than 1% for social services. Given rises in demand, we will just see more and more cash-strapped councils cutting back."

The tightening up of council funding means the number of households across England receiving local authority care fell from 528,500 in 1991 to 345,000 this year, despite growing numbers of older people.

The CSCI data showed rationing has become much tighter over the past two years. In 2005-06, 54% of authorities restricted services to people whose needs were deemed "substantial".

This increased to 62% in 2006-07 and - according to councils' official plans - would reach 73% by the end of March.

Gordon Lishman, director general of Age Concern, said: "Chronic under-funding of home care services means people are being deprived of the help they need until they reach crisis point ... We need a better system for paying for care to end the postcode lottery and the unfair way people on low and modest incomes are charged."

The Local Government Association said: "Councils want to provide the services vulnerable people need but are increasingly unable to do so because central government funding has not kept pace with the demands of an ageing population."

David Rogers, chairman of the association's community wellbeing board, added: "Ministers need to turn with urgency to the long-term overhaul of the future funding of adult care services ... It is unjust that people have to wait until their life is threatened, or suffer from a serious mental and physical illness, before they receive care.

"If society is to meet people's needs and aspirations, the social care system needs root and branch reform, giving individuals choice, independence, dignity and control over their lives."

Harrow council last night defended its decision to save £2m by withholding services from people in substantial need. Chris Mote, the leader, said it received less from the government than other London boroughs and had to concentrate support on the most vulnerable.

"We were forced to take action ... to balance the budget" he said.

MPs have a moral obligation to be far more responsible with scarce public money than gifting it to EU, which has a terrible reputation for waste, fraud and mismanagement.

They must choose to stand up for properly-funded care for vulnerable people and vote against the European Communities (Finance) Bill at its final reading in a few weeks time.

Norfolk: Warning over the cost of care

Old people face having to pay more for their care and some will miss out completely as Norfolk social services prepares to make millions of pounds of cuts - reports the Eastern Daily Press.

The department is trying to make £13m of savings from the adult social services budget next year alone, a figure which rises to £37m over the next three years.

It is part of what County Hall chiefs described as a “difficult” picture for all the council's services. Although the county council will not hear about its government funding settlement until next month, it is expecting to receive an extra £16m from Whitehall - but faces paying an extra £38.7m in inflation costs and to meet rising demand for services, leaving it to make £22.7m of savings next year.

Paul Brittain, the council's head of finance, said: “There are savings right across the board in adult services, children's services, planning and transport and so on. It is a very difficult financial situation.”

Harold Bodmer, director of adult social services, said: “It is a tough situation. We have to set this on the context of a very difficult budget.”

The most severe cutbacks proposed are reducing the number of people who receive care by 1,084 over the next three years, saving £3m next year and more than £19m in all.

Hilary Macdonald, chief executive of Age Concern Norfolk, said that some people might choose to do without services if they were faced with having to pay more.

She said: “Inevitably the burden is going to fall on family and other carers.

“We are very concerned that with the need for cuts - and this is across the board, in health services as well as social services - preventative services will fall off the agenda. It is vitally important that older people receive the support they need”.

Chris Mowle, cabinet member for adult social services, said: “Quite clearly the government is underfunding social care by a massive amount, therefore if county councillors hold to their pledge and keep council tax down, services for vulnerable adults are at extreme risk.”

Suffolk: Massive council cuts proposed

A multi-million-pound round of cuts in services, from buses and road maintenance to care for older people and transport for sixth-formers, are in store for Suffolk residents - reports the Eastern Daily Press.

Older people also face paying more for council-run care homes, while support for extra-curricular dance, drama and sport could also be axed.

The proposed cuts were unveiled yesterday by Suffolk County Council at the start of its budget process. The plans will be discussed at scrutiny meetings over the next month before the budget is set in February.

Under fire from opposition councillors yesterday, council leader Jeremy Pembroke stressed the proposals were subject to change, and the council did not yet know what grant it would get from the government.

However, the council is expecting to have to save £16m, though it says it is also spending £10m on extra services.

Fifty-seven jobs will be lost, on top of the nine to 31 already planned for next year.

Mr Pembroke said the most unpopular decision was likely to be £950,000 of cuts to bus subsidies, which would spell the end to 15 bus services providing 150,000 passenger trips.

Likely to be equally unpopular is a proposal for the end of free transport for 16 to 18-year-olds to sixth form or college from next September.

Old people with savings may also be charged more if they move into one of the 15 council-run care homes.

Currently, the cost is capped at the amount the council pays for private sector homes, even though the true cost of a council-run home is higher.

Those entering council-run homes who are deemed able to afford the fees face having to pay upwards of £200 a week extra, but those already in them will not be affected.

Other proposals include: Cutting the roads maintenance budget by 40pc (£1.6m), meaning unclassified roads will be left to develop potholes rather than get preventative work. Axing support services for school dance, drama, and extra-curricular sport unless schools pay for them, saving £80,000 a year for three years.

Norfolk: Warning over care for future elderly

Thousands of East Anglian pensioners will not get the care they expect in old age, facing the grim prospect of footing hefty bills to pay for vital services, officials have warned - according to the Eastern Daily Press.

A report commissioned by the Local Government Association reveals a “startling gulf” between people's expected level of service from their council and the reality they will face in old age.

The survey shows that nine out of 10 adults want subsidised care from their council in old age - at a time when government funding to meet the needs of a growing elderly population is expected to dwindle from 2009.

Last night Age Concern and Norfolk County Council called for an immediate debate to raise people's awareness about the impact of government funding cuts on services.

“This is a very serious problem which is going to get worse and not many people are aware of it,” said Linda Gill, information and advice manger at Age Concern Norfolk.

“There has to be an urgent debate to raise awareness not just with elderly people, but also with men and women who are in their 40s or 50s now and who are not thinking about provisions for old age. They have to know what lies ahead of them,” she added.

There are 174,000 over 65s living in Norfolk of which 25,400 receive subsidised care. The number of elderly people is projected to increase to 187,750 by 2010, and the county council expects the number receiving subsidised care to increase proportionally.

However, despite the ageing population, government funding for essential services such as shopping, cleaning, bathing will drop to 3.45% by 2009 and to 3.4% by 2010/11.

“This is a real issue for Norfolk,” said Chris Mowle, county cabinet member for adult social services.

“We have an ever-growing older population as people live longer and in order for them to live well they will need more services. The government has just announced how much money councils will get next year and from Norfolk's point of view this was a bad settlement.”

He said the authority was at the bottom of the league table of all county councils when it comes to the allocation of overall grants.

A survey last year showed that the county was underfunded by £21m.

The LGA-commissioned MORI poll interviewed 956 adults across England and Wales, following the release of the Comprehensive Spending Review at the beginning of October.

Only five per cent of respondents across the country said they would expect to pay for all their basic care even though, closer inspection of the figures published in this year's Spending Review social care budget increases have failed to keep pace with demographic changes.

Last night Sir Simon Milton, chairman of the LGA said: “There is a startling gulf between the type of care they expect when they reach old age and the reality of what they will receive. A poor funding settlement, an ageing population and a lack of progress on any long term solution to the financial pressures on social services that local government will face a situation, by as early as 2009, where it cannot afford to provide service thousands of vulnerable old people.”

Small rise ‘will mean higher council tax or cuts in service’

Householders face big increases in council tax or cuts in services after what council chiefs said was the worst settlement in a decade - reports The Times.

The Local Government Association (LGA) said that the 1% a year funding increase for the next three years would inevitably lead to council tax rises above this year’s 4.2%.

The association warned that efforts to hold down council tax rises would be at the expense of cuts in social services and elderly care.

“This is the worst settlement for local government in a decade,” said Sir Simon Milton, the LGA's chairman.

“Councils will continue to work hard for the people they serve but they face tough choices. The Chancellor’s announcement will mean above-inflation rises in bills for council taxpayers and businesses, and there remains a black hole in funding for the care of the elderly.”

The association claims that there will be 400,000 more older people over the next three years, many of whom will require social services at home or in residential care.

Yet councils have already had to restrict the eligibility criteria for social care at home.

Foot-care failure 'causes misery'

Older people are being left housebound and disabled by a lack of NHS foot-care services in England, Age Concern says.

It cites Office of National Statistics figures from 2001 suggesting a third of over-65s cannot cut their own toe-nails and struggle to access NHS services.

Some are even trying to cut their nails with gardening shears, the charity said as it launched a campaign on the issue.

The Department of Health said they expected the NHS to provide good chiropody services for the elderly.

People may need to see a chiropodist because of problems with poor circulation, ulcers or overlapping toes.

Older people may also need help with basic foot care such as nail cutting and foot hygiene because they can no longer reach their own toe-nails.

Launching their Feet for Purpose campaign, Age Concern said older people were being put on long waiting lists forcing them to pay privately or rely on services provided by the charity.

It said an NHS report showed that between 1996 and 2005, there was a 20% drop in new episodes of care in NHS chiropody.

In some areas people have no access to foot-care services on the NHS, Age Concern said.

Lack of even the most basic foot care puts the elderly at risk of complications that lead to dangerous falls, severe restrictions on mobility and social isolation.

Age Concern director general Gordon Lishman said as well as cases of people cutting their nails with gardening shears, people had also resorted to kicking solid walls in their bare feet to break their nails.

"Foot-care services should be free and universally available to those who need them - yet increasingly in many parts of England they are being restricted or withdrawn."

He called for the Department of Health to include chiropody in the NHS maximum waiting time target of 18 weeks.

Society of Chiropodists and Podiatrists chairman Janet McInnes said if older people were able to stay physically active they placed less of a burden on other parts of the health service.

"The SCP, along with other organisations, has highlighted again and again the impact of a lack of investment in foot health treatment for older people," she said.

"The importance of good foot health in maintaining older people's independence, mobility and social contact cannot be overstated."

Lewisham: Plea over service cuts for old folk

Community groups are campaigning to raise awareness of potential cuts to elderly and disabled people's services - reports the South London Press.

Lewisham council could slash adult social care services for people assessed as having substantial needs.

A consultation period for the changes has been extended by a month to September 15.

Lewisham Mencap and Age Concern Lewisham are pleading with people to make their views known.

Both charities believe if the cuts go ahead their clients' conditions may worsen, and that many people probably don't know what is being considered by the council.

Nick O'Shea, of Lewisham Mencap, said: "We have been rallying parents, holding meetings and getting people to fill out the consultation forms.

Lewisham council is considering three options, including only providing non-residential adult social care to those with "critical" and "greater substantial" needs.

It is believed if the cuts go ahead it will affect 580 people and save the council around £1.6million.

Chris Lunn, of Age Concern Lewisham, said: "We recognise the council has to make decisions but we want to present the case for older people as strongly as possible.

"We are asking people to really consider how this will impact on themselves, their family and those who already need these services.

"There is a lot of evidence that shows people in these circumstances get worse quickly without help and end up needing intensive and very expensive services instead."

Elderly 'suffering mental health pandemic'

Britain's elderly are in the grip of a mental health crisis with more than 3.5 million older people suffering depression or dementia, according to a new study reported in the Daily Telegraph.

The new figures show the scale of mental health problems in the over-65s is far greater than previously thought.

Experts warn unless prompt Government action is taken the number of those suffering mental health problems will rise by a third in the next 15 years.

The disturbing analysis is released today by the UK Inquiry into Mental Health and Well-Being in Later Life, involving experts from the London School of Economics, the Royal College of Nursing and the charity Age Concern.

According to the study, up to 2.6 million older people - one in four of those over 65 and two in five of those over 85 - are suffering from depression or serious symptoms of depression. Meanwhile, one in five people over 80 suffers from dementia.

Describing it as a "mental health pandemic", the report claims that these are the "invisible" people whose problems are often caused by loneliness, long-term illness and lack of independence.

Many avoid seeking help because of a perceived stigma. Those that do seek help often receive inferior treatment and have their symptoms put down to age.

The inquiry calls for a Government task force to be set up by 2008 to tackle the problem.

"There is no time to waste. As our population ages, we must ensure that the number of older people who suffer mental health problems are minimised," the report says.

"The majority of older people with mental health problems do not receive services. We need to shift our attention to them, to ensure they are supported by loved ones and enabled to care for themselves - by design, not by accident or neglect."

The study predicts that unless there are effective interventions, 3.5 million older people will have symptoms of depression and almost one million will have dementia by 2021.

It states that the Department of Health framework for mental health services has so far focused only on people up to 65.

Those over that age receive lower-cost and inferior services to younger people, even if they have the same condition.

Dr June Crown, the chairman of the inquiry said: "Mental health problems in later life are often preventable and treatable, and action to improve the lives of older people who experience mental health difficulties is long overdue."

Ivan Lewis, a junior health minister, said: "This report raises fundamental questions for the NHS, care system, families and all communities."

Derby: Alarm as care home faces closure

Fears have been raised that Derbyshire care homes could come under pressure after an authority admitted it was looking at plans to shut one - reports the BBC.

Derby City Council has announced a consultation period over the future of Bramble Brook in Mickleover.

The council said residential care had become less popular in recent years and it had 80 vacancies across the city.

Age Concern said greater emphasis on home care meant many care homes were facing a financial squeeze.

There are about 40 residents and 32 staff at Bramble Brook, which has been selected as it provides no specialist care.

The families of those at Bramble Brook said the idea of being moved away from friends and familiar surroundings was causing distress.

Katy Pugh, chief executive of Age Concern in Derby, said: "I think finances are very tight and many of the new strategies and agendas mean money will have to be redistributed, so it is possible there will be more closures."

She added: "Experience has told us that older people facing this sort of situation suffer greatly.

"They become very anxious and it is more likely their health will suffer and certainly these changes are much harder to cope with at that time of life."

Lambeth: 'Chilling' plans for the elderly

A hospital boss has criticised a council's plan to restrict care provision to elderly and disabled people - reports ICSouthLondon.

Patricia Moberly, chair-woman of Guys and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, has described Labour-run Lambeth's plan to restrict care to people in critical need as "chilling".

She said: "We have been trying over the years to make things better for vulnerable people in our society.

"It's much better for people to be looked after at home.

"The potential of these cuts is actually quite chilling."

Under the plan, elderly and disabled people in "substantial need" of care would no longer receive support services from the council.

The council also plans to ramp up care charges for things like home help from £7.55 to £17.50 per hour. It would see the council make a profit out of the service.

The plans met with a massive backlash when they were published this year.

Around 450 pensioners, disabled people and carers marched on Lambeth Town Hall in protest.
The backlash forced the council to extend a consultation into the proposals prior to their implementation.

A decision will be made next month whether or not to press ahead with the plans.

Ms Moberly made her comments at a meeting of Lambeth's health and adult services scrutiny committee on Wednesday night.

Other health professionals also slammed the strategy.

King's College Hospital stakeholder relations manager Phil Bollman said: "It seems to me that this will only shift care back to the hospitals and have an impact on care. People will end up stuck in hospital blocking beds."

Lambeth's cabinet member for health and adult services Councillor Donatus Anyanwu insisted efforts had been made to try to avoid the proposed cuts. But he warned Lambeth did not have the cash to prevent them.

He said: "We can't invent money, we can't make money. We can't rob some other area to pay for these services."

However, the government could afford to give Lambeth a bigger grant to maintain these services without cuts or increases in fees charged to vulernable people if it wasn't planning to gift an extra £2.5 billion a year to the audit-failing EU ... despite the EU's on-going failure for twelve years now to explain how the "majority" of its money is being spent.

So how is local MP Kate Hoey going to vote, when the EU budget deal comes up in Parliament for approval? In favour of lavishing billions more pounds on the EU without justification? Or in favour of saving public money from waste and its investment in better local services instead?

Elderly people's lives 'worsen'

More than one-fifth of elderly people feel they are living in poverty, a Help the Aged survey has suggested - according to the BBC.

Of 1,095 adults questioned, 28% said their quality of life had got worse in the last 12 months, while 93% said their lives had not improved.

The charity said the findings were "outrageous" and called for a clear commitment to end pensioner poverty.

Around half of over 65-year-olds fail to claim the benefits they are entitled to, the survey also found.

Help the Aged said that its report, Spotlight on older people in the UK, brought to light issues faced by vulnerable older people, including poverty, neglect and ageism.

A total of 13% of those surveyed said they were lonely and rarely left the house.

The study, the second annual report from Help the Aged, suggested 21% of elderly people lived in poverty and rising fuel bills made life a daily struggle.

It includes testimonies from a woman in her late seventies who says her quality of life is nil, a woman aged 87 who says she never leaves the house, and an old man who thinks a tin of soup is a luxury to eke out over two days.

Paul Cann, director of policy at the charity, said: "Far from being people's twilight years, this report shows the reality of growing older in the UK is much darker.

"It is absolutely outrageous that people's lives are getting worse or not improving as they get older."

The charity said with the number of people aged 65 years and older set to rise by nearly 60% in the next 25 years, there was no excuse for the government or anyone else to be oblivious of the issues.

Care funding for aged chaotic, claim charities

The Daily Telegraph reports that one of the biggest charity coalitions of its kind is demanding an urgent national debate on funding long-term care for the elderly, amid warnings that the current system is shambolic.

While one in five people will need care in the future, the system is not fit for current pensioners let alone their children, the coalition claims. Yet few people know at first hand the extent of the chaos.

The "Caring Choices" coalition, run by the King's Fund, Joseph Rowntree Foundation, Help the Aged, and Age Concern, and supported by 11 other organisations spanning health and care, is hosting debates across the country to address failings and look at solutions.

Julia Unwin, the director of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, a social research charity, says: "The current system is neither fair, clear nor sustainable and the time has come to devise a system that is fit for the 21st Century."

Social care hit by NHS deficits

Social care for vulnerable people is being squeezed as a result of NHS deficits, according to the Local Government Association (LGA) - reports the BBC.

The LGA says costs are being shunted to social services departments as the NHS in England aims to balance its books.

A survey of 95 councils which run social services found two thirds say NHS debts are affecting them.

The Department of Health said the NHS and local authorities had to work together for patients' benefit.

Forty per cent of the councils surveyed by the LGA said the knock on effect of the financial pressure in the NHS was worse than in previous years.

When the organisations were asked what the NHS had done in their area to affect them, half said beds had been closed, and a quarter said there had been a reduction in district nurse numbers.

Another 14% said there were increased waiting times for NHS services, such as admission to hospital while 13% said community hospitals had been closed.

In addition, more than a third of the councils in the LGA survey say they are having to take responsibility for more cases normally dealt with by the NHS.

The continuing care of elderly patients is the main area where responsibilities overlap. Almost a quarter (24%) say the local NHS is failing to fund agreed or joint services.

This might involve cuts to nursing services, meaning home helps have to take on tasks such as changing wound dressings or checking insulin levels.

Funding disputes have increased, the councils reported.

The LGA says there is deep concern on the ground about the trend towards cost-shunting and its impact on already stretched council social care services.

Sandy Bruce-Lockhart, chairman of the LGA, said councils did not want to start a war of words with the NHS.

But he added: "There are grave financial pressures on both councils and the NHS that are starting to impact on the quality of service."

Colchester: £4m health cuts fears

Mental health services in north Essex face cuts of up to £4 million, reports the Colchester Evening Gazette.

Beds could go at key outpatient units like The Lakes in Colchester and Peter Bruff ward at Clacton Hospital, as NHS bosses aim to plug budget black holes.

North East Essex, Mid Essex and West Essex primary care trusts (PCTs) are all reviewing the services they commission from North Essex Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust.

As well as Colchester and Tendring beds, areas under "particular scrutiny" include home visits and long-term care for elderly patients.

The blow comes hard on the heels of evidence that already too little is being done to help those with mental illness, which affects one in four of the UK population.

An official study revealed that an average of 52 people a year – one a week – are killed by violent patients released into the community.

A lack of support at home was blamed for figures showing 1,300 mentally ill people commit suicide every year.

A spokesman for the Mid Essex PCT said: "The PCT is looking to all its partner NHS organisations to endorse a joint approach to achieving efficiency savings."

Colchester MP Bob Russell said: "I believe what we are witnessing is further evidence that the NHS is in financial crisis."

- Article contributed by: Mr & Mrs L.C. M, Colchester

Elderly face an end to home care

Blaming a "funding shortfall and the widening impact of NHS cuts", Britain's social care watchdog reports today that hundreds of thousands of elderly and disabled people are facing the withdrawal of their home care services.

The Commission for Social Care Inspection report highlights more than 100 councils limiting care services to only the most dependent people, leaving without help those regarded as unable to manage "several" care tasks like washing, dressing, cleaning or shopping, highlights The Times.

North Yorkshire, Northumberland and West Berkshire are singled out as areas where councils have already started restricting home care services to the most critical cases.

Local authorities are blaming government grants for social services failing to keep up with growing numbers of elderly people, along with extra burdens being placed on their finances by NHS cutbacks.

Bury St Edmunds: Day centre facing axe

A cash-strapped day centre for elderly in Bury St Edmunds could be forced to close next April after Suffolk County Council funding cuts – reports the Bury Free Press.

The council is only picking up the tab for 38 people a week to visit the Beetons Lodge day care centre and will not be referring or paying for any more people to attend.

The centre will be forced to turn to private paying customers if it is to survive.

The news comes as Suffolk County Council warned of more cutbacks to services and job losses next year, ahead of expected cuts in government funding.

The administration said is expected a shortfall of £22 million and anticipates the loss of 134 full-time posts.

Anne Bines, manager of the centre, said: "The elderly are being victimised, once again, with cutbacks because the can’t fight back.

"They have given us the okay until March next year, but after that date we don’t know if there is a job for us or not.

"It’s devastating for the people who come here. Sometimes this is the only place they get out to each week. Once that is taken away they have got nothing."

The day centre can cater for up to 92 people a week, but currently has 57 people attending.

Richard Freeman, chairman of the Beetons Lodge trustees said: "All of our customers are over 70 and have some sort of moderate level of disability, such as dementia, Alzheimers or Parkinson’s Disease.

"Some come twice a week so that costs around £40 – a lot of money for someone who is frail and elderly to find."