HOLSWORTHY Day Centre welcomed Waitrose Community Matters Champion, Sue Cottle, on Tuesday, April 12, for the presentation of a cheque for £463 —which will provide hampers for the clients, with the remainder added to the centre’s funds, writes Christine Williams.

It was a bittersweet occasion as during last week the clients and volunteers received the news that the day centre, in its present form, will close at the end of July.

Holsworthy Day Centre was set up in 1992 in the Manor Suite and over the years, on three days per week, has provided care and companionship to hundreds of clients in the Holsworthy area.

In the early days about 43 clients in total attended, all of them supported financially by Devon Social Services.

Many carers received support as well, giving them free time whilst knowing their dependants were safe.

This was made possible by the dedication of the staff and of many volunteers, some of whom came originally for bereavement support.

Every effort was made to encourage the clients to participate in group activities and trips out and even an annual holiday was organised.

Above all however for the clients, many of whom were disabled and some living on their own, their day at the day centre was the highlight of their week as it gave them a chance to get out of the house and into a place providing care and friendship.

Among the day centre’s clients are Paul Lucas who says he enjoys the change of scene and activities, Sybil Crocker, who lives alone, and for whom the companionship offered is the most important thing, and Brian Tanner whose wife gets the chance of some free time while he is at the daycentre.

In 2011 the Memorial Hall Committee made the decision to more than double the rent for the Manor Suite so the day centre was obliged to find new premises, which they did at a lower rent in the day room of Holsworthy Hospital.

In a change of policy, about five years ago, Social Services virtually stopped referring clients and didn’t tell the Day Centre that they needed to have applied for ‘preferred provider’ status.

Manager Anne Jose, who twice set about completing and sending in a lengthy, complicated form, only discovered this omission by chance, late last year.

She was told that they had failed to qualify and among reasons given was the lack of a ‘whistle blower policy’, of the paper qualifications of staff and volunteers, that the form was not completed in the right terminology, and because insufficient information was given on the suitability of the hospital building for elderly disabled people.

As a result, a meeting of the Day Centre Committee, held on March 22, took the decision with deep regret that due of falling numbers of Social Service clients and an increase in rent due on August 1, the centre would have to close at the end of July.

However, a meeting of the staff and volunteers on Monday, April 10, decided that every effort would be made to continue the work of the day centre — if necessary at a different location and on a lower budget.

The clients of the day centre, for whom it means so much, welcomed this decision.

Anne Jose said: “Much of current thinking is that the elderly want care only in their homes with the twice daily attendance of support workers to maintain their independence.

“However, the majority of our clients neither want nor are capable of spending all day alone. Furthermore, family carers need a break otherwise the client would have to go into residential care sooner rather than later.

“We have proved over the last 26 years how beneficial an interactive day fentre can be in improving the mental wellbeing of the elderly, providing a change for the carers, and how Holsworthy Hospital patients benefit from sharing in our activities.

“We have one more opportunity to apply for preferred provider status and our aim now is to find a way to continue providing such a necessary service.

“Where and how we can achieve this will hopefully become clear as we approach our deadline at the end of July.”