£1000 bills are a 'push out the back door'

Anger as backdated fees issued by council weeks after disabled facility was earmarked for closure in cost-cutting measures

- EDEL KENEALY

People who face £1,000 in backdated fees for the Disability Resource Centre (DRC) say they are being "pushed out the back door" amidst plans to close it.

Vulnerable people who attend day services within the centre are being charged up to £90 per week to attend between fees and transport costs.

Members - who have just been told how much they will pay each week as part of a means-tested review - say Renfrewshire Council has backdated the fees to April, resulting in bills in excess of £1,000.

The fees have been issued weeks after Renfrewshire Health and Social Care Partnership announced it wants to close the Love Street facility as part of plans to plug a £19 million budget black hole.

The proposals form part of a redesign of adult services which, if approved, would see three central hubs created across the local authority area for people with learning and physical disabilities - meaning three current outlets will close.

Theresa Jensen, who is the vice chair of the DRC service users committee and secretary of the Renfrewshire Visually Impaired Forum, said she believed the fees were another means of reducing demand for services.