Campaign group takes on the Council
A local campaign group, which represents the borough’s elderly and disabled residents, has launched a legal challenge against the Council following H&F’s decision last June to start charging for home care services.
The Hammersmith & Fulham Coalition against Community Care Cuts (HAFCAC) has accused the Council of penalising those who need help to carry out basic daily tasks, such as shopping, collecting pensions or doing the laundry, by making them pay for these services.
The group also says the Council has broken its pre-election promise not to introduce fees for home care.
HAFCAC says it has lodged a claim for a judicial review at the High Court, arguing that the Council’s decision to implement the fees was unlawful. The group claims the Council was “not legally entitled to ignore its promise not to introduce charging,” and that “it ought to have considered the impact on disabled people and others before it took the decision”.
Kevin Caulfield, Chair of the Coalition, said: “We are not talking about charging disabled people for having luxuries; the services in question support people to meet basic human needs such as having a shower and going to the toilet, needs that the rest of the community would view as absolute human rights.
“Many local people are extremely concerned that charges will force disabled and older residents into further poverty and deter them from accessing community care services which they really need. I do not believe our local community, if they really knew the consequences of such a policy decision by the Council, would sanction such a move.”
David Webb, who is disabled and lives locally, said the Council should continue to provide free home care to those in need by reducing waste elsewhere: “These charges will have a serious impact on many people who already face barriers in securing a reasonable quality of life.
“The savings that the Council will make through charges are actually quite a small part of the borough’s overall budget. It could make the necessary economies in other ways, and if it were really concerned about its older and disabled residents it would have looked more closely at its budget and at reducing waste and inefficiencies.”
Cllr Antony Lillis, cabinet member for community and children's services, said home care fees would only be paid by those who could afford it: "Asking some people to make a contribution towards the cost of care services is not a prospect the Council welcomes and is a conclusion we have reached after much consultation and deliberation. Almost all other local authorities charge people who use their services. However, we have more inclusive eligibility criteria for services than most and charge less than the majority of our London counterparts.
“Our charging system is in accordance with the Government's guidelines and means that only people who are assessed as being able to afford it are charged. The Council will vigorously defend its decision at the forthcoming judicial review."
From January 2009, there will be an hourly fee of £10 rising to £12.40 for all home care services and there will be no weekly limit to the charge.
The average hourly rate in London is £13.81 while in neighbouring boroughs, RBK&C charges £4.67 an hour and Ealing residents pay £12.10 an hour.
Yasmine Estaphanos
27 August 2008
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