New strategy aims to help people with learning disabilities live the fullest lives possible

Helping people with learning disabilities live the best possible life is at the heart of a strategy will be launched on Monday 21 October by partners in the city.

York’s learning disability strategy will be presented by the Learning Disability Partnership at Priory Street. The strategy aims to support people with learning disabilities to live fulfilling lives, and to raise awareness of the help and support available to them, as well as what more needs to be done.

For the past 18 months, people across York have been talking and working together to prepare the all-age learning disabilities strategy. It prioritises how to live well in York from birth to later life. These priorities are being as independent, healthy and included in their communities as much as possible.

The four main priorities of the strategy are: education, life-long learning and employment; participating in and contributing to the community; living as independently and being as healthy as possible. Action plans around these are being drawn up with the partnership.

Central to this work are people with learning disabilities themselves, together with their families and carers, volunteers and professionals from across education and employment, health and social care, travel and culture. An easy read version of the strategy has been published.

New elderly persons homes planned for Clifton plus changes for services for adults with learning disabilities

Burton Stone community centre to be demolished

New community facilities and 33 new homes for older people could be built in Clifton.

The homes include the city’s first available to buy for shared ownership on a council-built care scheme. This proposed £6.667 million scheme will meet increasing need for extra care for the city’s growing number of older residents and replaces an existing community centre.

The 29 new extra care apartments and four two-bedroomed bungalows would be built as an annexe to the Marjorie Waite Court extra care scheme. Up to ten homes could be sold on a shared equity basis, helping older homeowners – 80% of whom own their own home in York – to move to more appropriate accommodation.

It forms part of the council’s programme to increase high quality accommodation with care for rising population of older people, as agreed in June 2015.

The scheme’s tenants, local residents and groups using the Burton Stone Community Centre site were consulted on and their feedback has helped shape the proposal.

Besides using the land currently occupied by Burton Stone Community Centre to extend the extra care scheme, new community facilities will be built to meet the needs of local people, groups and Marjorie Waite Court tenants. Some of the existing users of the Burton Stone centre will move to new facilities in Burnholme, Tang Hall.

City of York Council’s Executive will also be asked to give their consent for the council to go out to the market to procure support providers that will deliver services for adults and young people with learning disabilities when they meet on Thursday 31 August.

At their meeting Executive will be asked for their consent to go out to tender for two schemes, a day base at the Burnholme health and wellbeing campus and a short breaks service, currently at Flaxman Avenue.

If they agree, Executive will be asked to delegate the award of the tenders to the corporate director of health, housing and adult social care in consultation with the executive member for health, housing and adult social care.

If approved, the day base will be part of the new Burnholme health and wellbeing campus, where building work is currently ongoing. The site, as a whole, will see over £35m of public and private sector investment and provide care, health, community and sports facilities as well as new housing and is expected to be ready in 2018.
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