In accordance with Council Procedure Rule 35 and Appendix 7 to the rules, a total period of 15 minutes is allocated for members of the public to speak at Council meetings.
Individual members of the public may speak for up to 5 minutes, but the Chairman will decide how the period of time allocated for public speaking will be apportioned, where there are a number of speakers.
Members of the public must provide 3 clear working days notice, in writing, if they wish to ask a question at the meeting. It is not a requirement to give notice of the intention to make use of public speaking provision. However, as a matter of courtesy, a period of 24 hours notice is encouraged.
Minutes:
Mrs Denise Roberts attended the meeting and used public speaking time to voice her concerns relating to the Council's decision to close Cypress House Community Support Centre, in Handforth. She stated that, for many years this excellent centre has provided respite and day care services to Cheshire East residents, from as far afield as Disley, Higher Poynton, Knutsford and High Legh and also Warrington. It also provided convalescent care for Wythenshawe, Stepping Hill and Macclesfield Hospitals. She had personal concerns regarding its closure, as her aunt, being sole carer for her elderly, disabled husband, had used it regularly for much needed respite care. Whilst she fully understood that the Council needed to make savings, she could not agree with the decision to close down one, out of only two, Local Authority owned Care Centres in Cheshire East, which had the Quality Care Commission’s (CQC) 3 Star excellence award; the other centre being Lincoln House in Crewe. Cypress House had retained this award for the past 3 years, after the Care Quality Commission had visited and inspected the Centre without notification. She stated that very few Private Care Homes in Cheshire, East had this award of excellence. On speaking with Social Workers, Hospital Bed Managers, residents and carers she had heard nothing but praise for the dedicated, happy and professional team of staff. After speaking with Cheshire East’s Head of Adult Services, she had established that bed under occupancy at Cypress house was the reason for closure. All service users had received a letter, late in March, after rumours about the proposed closure of the Centre were printed in the local press. They were given a list of alternative Support Centres, all located in Macclesfield, Congleton and Crewe and, with the exception of Lincoln House, only held CQC's 2 star standard award. Prior to service users receiving this letter, bed occupancy at Cypress house in March was 30 clients per night, February 25-30 per night, January 23-28 per night and December 2009, 21 per night. She stated that the Centre had been closed in November, due to an outbreak of diarrhoea and Vomiting and an illness such as this and C-DIFF and flu pandemics could close Hospital wards, Care Homes, etc in a matter of hours. She questioned, with the closure of Cypress House, whether Cheshire East Care Services had the necessary emergency respite and day care services available to users, when such emergencies happened again. She noted that the Council’s Cabinet agenda stated that Cheshire East had a higher than average number of elderly and residents with dementia. As people were living longer, more pressure would be put on care resources. She stated that, at the recent Cabinet meeting, Councillor Roland Domleo had given a verbal guarantee to Cabinet and herself on his decision to close Cypress house, that all alternative respite and day care services offered to service users would continue to receive the same high standard of care. She hoped, for the sake of Cheshire East Council's Head of Adult and Social Care Team, that his statement was correct and she also hoped that the Council would give her comments due consideration.