Clubs for older people to close after funding axed

Eileen Lockwood said she would “cry buckets” to say goodbye to friends when her club closes

A charity which supports older people has announced it will close its nine day clubs at the end of the month after a council withdrew its funding.

Age UK York's clubs provide a range of activities and a chance to socialise for people aged 55 and over.

It said council support of about £200,000 a year had been "crucial" in covering the costs of running the clubs for older residents.

The City of York Council said it was reviewing its overall budget and was identifying "priority areas for funding" for the future.

The day clubs have been operating for 30 years

Maria Pickard, day club manager at Age UK York said: “It will be devastating because for me seeing people come out enjoy the day and not having that any more I think for all concerned will be a huge loss and a huge loss to York."

Eileen Lockwood, 96, attends one of the weekly clubs at Acomb Methodist Church and said she will “cry buckets” saying goodbye to her friends when the club she attends closes.

Service user Margaret Worthington said: “People don’t have visitors and neighbours as they used to.

"This is the only time they get to see other people.”

Acomb Methodist Church hosts one of the Age UK York day clubs which will have its funding withdrawn

Simon Holmes, from Age UK York, said they had run the clubs for 30 years and were looking at providing something new.

"We’re going to have to do it in a very different way because the funding has been crucial to making these happen.

"And we obviously don’t have access to that level of funding going forward so we really need to ask for help."

Sara Storey, the council's director of adult social care, said: "We're reviewing our overall budget alongside existing community contracts that we fund, in order to identify priority areas for funding going forward in line with residents' identified needs.

"Our budgets are under ongoing and increasing pressures with Government funding not keeping pace with the demands we face."

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