Groups co-operate to tackle growing home-care crisis

An alliance of 50 charities is warning that adult social care is in crisis and urging people across the West to back a campaign for urgent reform.

Parkinson’s UK is among them and yesterday a Parkinson’s Disease sufferer who launched a support group serving parts of Somerset, Dorset and Wiltshire added his voice to the campaign.

People with long-term conditions like Parkinson’s or other disabilities are now living longer. However many older and disabled people, their carers and their families are facing catastrophic care bills or going without the essential support they need. Cuts to council budgets have made a bad situation worse in many areas.

Parkinson’s Disease sufferer and former police officer Stephen Beech, 62, of Wincanton, who set up a Wincanton area support group last year, told how one woman sufferer in Wiltshire has had her home care cut by one hour as council spending cuts bite.

“One hour’s cut may not seem like a great deal, but it may take her three hours to do the things that would have been done in one hour,” he said.

Social care is a vital support for many Parkinson’s sufferers. However, many find they are not eligible or are means-tested, with some having to sell their homes to fund care.

As part of the Care and Support Alliance the charities are urging the Government for a timetable for reform. The Dilnot Commission has recommended a cap on the maximum lifetime costs of social care for an individual and a more generous means-testing process.

Val Buxton, director of policy, campaigns and information at Parkinson’s UK, said it is vital to maintain pressure on MPs.

She said: “We believe care and support services should be accessible to all those who need it, regardless of means.”

Mr Beech was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease in 2008. The progressive neurological condition means he has difficulty walking. His wife, June, his carer, is deaf, and he says his life was saved by her hearing dog, Valentine, when he collapsed on the patio of their home. His nearest support group is 15 miles away in Dorset, which is why he set up the Wincanton group, to contact it ring 01963 824854.

To join the campaign visit: www.parkinsons.org.uk/endthecarecrisis and follow the link to complete the online form.