Petition to save Whitaker Centre in Derby

A 650-name petition to save a local authority-run day centre for the elderly in Derby has been handed into the city council by protesters.

The Whitaker Centre is earmarked for closure with the users due to be sent to the Morleston Street centre.

Derby City Council has said numbers attending had fallen and closing it would save up to £300,000.

But local campaigners believe demand is likely to rise in the next few years due to an ageing population.

A council consultation into the proposed closure finished on Monday and a decision is due to be made by the council's cabinet in November.

The city council, which is run by a Conservative/Liberal Democrat coalition, is implementing a £27m savings plan over two years.

More than 620 posts have already been lost from a workforce of about 10,000.