A CENTRE which provides vital respite care for disabled adults faces closure as Bolton Council attempts to make £200,000 in savings.

Harrowby’s Centre has been operating in Farnworth for more than 20 years under the Hft charity, but a decision is now being taken on moving its adult disability care services to other places in the borough.

Twenty users would be moved from Mill Street to one of three other sites in Bolton which provide despite day care.

However, parents have spoken out over their fears that the move will put the ‘most vulnerable’ in the community at risk.

Eric Bromley’s 22-year-old son Ryan has been attending the centre five years. The 54-year-old from Farnworth said: “They are impacting on the most vulnerable, the most severely disabled people in the borough.

“When Ryan was going through school we had problems, respite he can’t scream out, he can’t talk. He is severely disabled and wheelchair bound.

“Putting him and others in with people who are less disabled will cause problems.

“The council says it will make a decision after talking to us but to the looks of letter sent out, that decision has already been made. They just want to shut the service down.”

Mr Bromley added that there was more disappointment for supporters of the service as it was due to celebrate a £20,000 Lottery funded grant which has helped it create a garden for its residents to grow vegetables.

He said: “I just think its a shame.”

The council is carrying out a consultation with families and carers, and if the report is accepted at the end of May the Hft contract and staff will transfer to Bolton Cares, which runs the other day centre provision in the borough

Rachel Tanner, assistant director of dept of people, said the aim was to provide day care at centres closer to where people live.

She added: “The council has invested in renovations and improvements to both the Thicketford Centre, Tonge Moor and Brazley centre, Horwich over the past few years to ensure that all centres are fully accessible to people with learning disabilities, physical disabilities and health conditions.

“The proposals recognise the positive service provided from the Harrowby’s centre and the importance of continuity of care for people.

“Families and carers views on these proposals and suggestions on how they can be implemented are important.

“It’s also important to stress that no service users will lose a service or face a reduction in their service, their care will be delivered at a different location.”

Hft’s regional manager for Bolton and Bradford Andrew Horner said the national charity had been committed to developing the quality of its services at the centre for the last three years and had recently invested in the site.

He said: “While we understand the need to cut costs in these challenging financial times, we were disappointed to learn of Bolton Council’s decision to transfer day services provided by Hft to alternative sites.

“The people we support and our staff are important to us and during this time of change we will be working in close partnership with Bolton Council.

“Our focus moving forward will be providing continuity of quality services and ensuring a smooth transition for both the people we support and our staff teams.”