Carers march over centre closure

Carers and parents have protested over proposals to close a centre for people with learning disabilities.

Vonne Milne, a carer at Pershore Centre for 16 years, said the protesters had a "lot of support" from people in the town who wanted it to remain open.

The protest in Pershore was held ahead of a meeting by Worcestershire county councillors over the issue next week. The county council said the centre and Worcester's Perryfields Centre were under used and not financially viable.

Following a three-month consultation, it decided in February to close both centres and relocate the majority of users to the Cherry Orchard centre in Worcester. The council's Overview Scrutiny Steering Committee meeting will consider the issue on Wednesday and campaigners are hoping the decision will be changed.

Ms Milne said the protest was to show people they were still trying to save the centre. "It's just to let them know as well that we have not given up and we are still fighting," she said.

The council considered the future of the two day centres, along with that of Cherry Orchard, earlier this year.

It said numbers at the three centres had fallen and there was now "significant under occupancy in each".

The council also said Pershore only supported people with profound learning disabilities which was "inconsistent" with other day centres. These provided an integrated service for people with varying levels of disability which was felt to be more beneficial.