Unison union members have saved a dementia care service in Lambeth, south London. Industrial action forced the council to pause plans to close its adult daycare centre on the Central Hill estate. The council’s plans would have resulted in the loss of ten jobs.
With around 2,000 people currently living with dementia in the borough, a figure expected to rise as the population ages, the proposed closure raised serious concerns about the future of local care provision.
A day after the election of left-wing Green Martin Abrams as Leader and the appointment of the Green Cabinet, the council published a statement of “a pause to all closure activity and any voluntary or compulsory redundancy processes while the Council undertakes a detailed review of the proposal and alternative options”.
Lambeth will reinstate referrals to the day centre. Those had been paused for over 18 months, after which the council argued for closure citing under-use. Unison struck for four days, and was in the middle of a week of strikes when the reversal was made.
Joint Branch Secretary Simon Hannah said: “This is a real win for Unison members fighting for proper public services. I’m so proud of everyone that took action and fought for what is right. Public services don’t have to be destroyed in the name of austerity.“
Research studies have found that day centres produce benefits for older people with dementia and for their carers, both long-term and short-term. Yet half the adult day centres in the country have closed since 2010. §
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