DEMENTIA sufferers' families have expressed their dismay after a Northwood day centre for the elderly was abruptly closed, amid 'serious health and safety concerns'.

Eastbury Road Day Centre, in Eastbury Road, was permanently shut on Friday (Nov 26), after Hillingdon Council cabinet members decided just one week earlier that the building was 'not fit for purpose, due to unacceptable safety risks in the event of a fire'.

It has been proposed centre visitors will be transferred to other day centres including Grassy Meadows and Poplar Farm, both in Hayes, or given personal budgets for lunch clubs or other community-based projects.

Northwood ward councillor and cabinet member for co-ordination and central services, Scott Seaman-Digby, insisted the decision had not been made lightly, and the alternative options will better meet the needs of visitors.

But relatives of centre users say they have been left 'devastated' by the closure, and have blasted the council for announcing the news at such short notice.

Bernard Pearce, 84, of Rectory Road, Ickenham, has been taking his wife, Judy, 81, to Eastbury Road Day Centre three times a week for the past three years, after she developed Alzheimer's disease.

Mr Pearce said: "The staff are absolutely tremendous and when we heard the news, I felt like bursting into tears.

"They could have made a special fire-proof room to protect visitors but the decision to close was made very hurriedly without any consultation.

"This hasn't been a problem for the past three years, so why has it suddenly become an issue now?

"Going to Hayes will be inconvenient for us but I feel really sorry for people living in Northwood, who will spend a long time stuck in traffic.

And the daughter of another centre user from Ruislip, who asked to remain anonymous, told the Gazette: "The staff really know their stuff and have been fantastic to my 87-year-old mother, who has severe dementia.

"My mother went to the centre to give my 89-year-old father a bit of respite. He is struggling to cope and we were horrified to be given just a week's notice about the closure.

"Hayes is quite a long way to travel from Ruislip and caring for someone with dementia is a 24-hour-a-day job.

"The council has not considered the carers and we are really scared that we will have no other option than to put my mother into a nursing home."

Director of adult social care, health and housing at Hillingdon Council, Linda Sanders, said: "The council has become aware of a series of issues, which, due to the nature of the building, could make fire evacuation difficult for the current centre users and could therefore put people at considerable risk.

"While we appreciate that closing the centre will be unsettling for some of our clients, we must ensure the safety of those in our care. We will be working with our clients and their families to identify alternative care options that meet their needs."

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