Parents’ care fight

Heller House in Northwood Road, Southall, could be closed by Ealing Council and relocated to another site in the borough as it says it does not comply with current care and children's homes regulations but parents and families of severely disabled children who use the home want it to stay open.

Suzy Nacrour, 57, of Hanwell, a parent of a child who uses Heller House, said: "Many families have children with very complex and challenging behaviour and are desperate for respite just to enable them to cope with the problems of everyday life.

"To some families, respite at Heller House is quite simply a lifeline without which family life becomes impossible. Respite has already been reduced and to reduce it further for these families will cause enormous stress, problems and family breakdown."

Ealing Council is proposing to relocate the existing service to a site in Jubilee Gardens which, although modern and complying with new regulations, will be smaller than Heller House, according to campaigners.

Julian Hillman, director of Ealing Mencap, and one of the supporters of Heller House, believes it is a bad decision by the council to propose the closure of the respite home.

He said: "Families who use it like it a lot.

"Our view is the needs of the children with disabilities is far greater.

"There should have been proper consultation with the parents."

Ealing Council says it is fully committed to providing an excellent service to children with disabilities and their families. A council spokesman told the Times: "We wish to ensure that the service is fully accessible for all children, and because of the age and layout of Heller House this is not something we can provide in the existing building.

"We appreciate that some parents have concerns regarding the proposals and we will continue to work closely with parents and users to ensure that we continue to provide excellent short break services for children with disabilities."