“Many families are on the brink and cannot go on much longer without more help”

Peredur Owen Griffiths, who represents Plaid Cymru, is one of four regional Senedd Members serving the South Wales East region.

In plenary last week, I found myself in familiar territory. Once again, I was calling on the Labour Government to look more closely on the variance in day centre provision for disabled people throughout the country. This is something I’ve called on the First Minister to try and sort out previously but the request has fallen on deaf ears. Once again, I was told by the government that this is a matter for local authorities.

Despite the opening back up of many things, Caerphilly County Borough is yet to fully reinstate day centre services; even for the most profoundly disabled. Some families have been left with no provision at all. I recently spoke with a father of a severely disabled adult who requires around-the-clock care. He described the devastating impact the withdrawal of services has had on their son and the family as a whole. Their case is not unique – there are many others who have been affected. Families have been told that Covid restrictions have meant they are unable to reinstate services, even for those with the most complex needs. Under pressure from campaigners and trade unions, a review was commissioned by the Labour-led administration but this will not report back until later this year. This will conveniently happen long after the local elections have been held. As the father I spoke to told me, many families are on the brink and cannot go on much longer without more help or, in some cases, any help at all.

The pandemic has undoubtedly had a seismic impact on almost every aspect of life. What is galling for many affected by the decimation of day centre services for disabled adults in Caerphilly County Borough is the knowledge that other local authorities have been able to cope much better. In many cases – Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council for example – the local authorities coping better are smaller and have fewer resources at their disposal than a large local authority like Caerphilly. 

As I said during Business Questions in the Senedd last week, local authority interpretation of government Covid regulations and guidance has led to a postcode lottery whereby somebody profoundly disabled in Crumlin, for instance, which is just within the boundaries of Caerphilly County Borough Council, would not receive day-care centre provision, whereas somebody living in Swffryd, a stone’s throw away in Blaenau Gwent, would. This is unacceptable. I do not think it is tenable for the Labour Government in Wales to allow the local authorities to tolerate such a situation when the consequences of the current arrangement are so detrimental to the most vulnerable people in Caerphilly County Borough and their families. 

If Caerphilly County Borough Council thought the issue could be kicked into the long grass with the review they announced, they have been mistaken. The situation has not changed for many families who have been left to struggle from day-to-day to do the best they can. Plaid Cymru support their campaign wholeheartedly and will stand shoulder-to-shoulder with them until the right thing is done concerning services for the disabled.