PARENTS of children with severe learning difficulties or disabilities are fighting to save a respite unit in Basingstoke which is under threat of closure by the county council.

Hampshire County Council (HCC) has launched a consultation on the closure of Firvale – a residential respite children’s unit next to Basingstoke hospital – in a bid to save £450,000 towards cuts to its Children’s Services Budget totalling £21 million.

This is part of wider cuts of £80 million by April 2023.

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The council says it cannot afford to pay the £400,000 improvements needed to the purpose-built unit, which is owned by Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

Its report also said users of Frivale have “experienced a loss of privacy within bedrooms and grounds because of recent adjoining building developments”.

It has been closed since the outbreak of the pandemic.

Lauren Freitas, whose five-year-old son Cohen has a rare genetic condition, said the unit provides vital support to her family.

Her son, who needs constant care and is up frequently at night with pain, currently accesses the medical part of Firvale run by Basingstoke hospital.

Firvale, which is rated as ‘requires improvement’ by Ofsted, has nine beds – five for HCC and four for Basingstoke hospital and costs £869,000 a year to run.

However, Lauren, a mother-of-three from Popley, said families have not been told what will happen to the four hospital beds if the county council go ahead with the closure.

She had hoped that Cohen would be able to access HCC's residential beds after recently becoming entitled to new weekly payments.

The 34-year-old said: “There is nothing in Basingstoke if they close Firvale. Cohen doesn’t sleep so it could be dangerous for me to drive him somewhere else.”

The council said it will provide alternative overnight respite, but the nearest units are in Andover, Surrey or Southampton, meaning a lengthy drive for parents.

Lauren attended a consultation event organised by the council but said the proposed closure has not been well publicised.

She said: “It makes me really angry. They are trying to say there are only 12 families benefitting from Firvale but that doesn’t include the waiting list.”

One of the suggestions offered by the council as an alternative is to provide support to a family at home.

The consultation report said: “Where it is identified that overnight respite is being provided to allow the family to have a good night’s sleep, practitioners will support the family to tackle sleep issues that would enable the child to remain at home and help the rest of the family to sleep well, thereby reducing the need for respite care.”

Lauren said: “Every single parent that struggles with a child’s sleep will have done this already. We have a carer come to the home during the school holidays. I can hear everything when he’s at home so I don’t really relax.”

The mum said Cohen suffers daily with sickness and pain resulting in him requiring help throughout the day and night.

But despite his challenges, Lauren said her son is a “happy, clever boy with a cheeky personality”.

She added that Firvale has so many children on its books they are lucky to be offered one overnight stay a month.

“I sleep whilst he’s at school so I can get through the day and have the energy to do housework and cooking dinner for my family. We are all exhausted and struggling from Cohen’s constant pain and wake ups in the night,” she said, adding: “If they close Firvale I shouldn’t be driving most days and I’m expected to drive for longer. They said they could offer transport but at what cost? Plus, my son can’t get transport to school because they are struggling to find an escort so I’m not sure how they will get him transported.”

Lauren has suggested the council expands the offering at Firvale to hold after school clubs, coffee mornings, and holiday workshops with money raised from these going back into funding the centre.

She added: “If Firvale was to stay open we could hopefully get some more respite that’s close to home so I can spend some time with my other children, doing what they enjoy.”

A second consultation event is being held at Basingstoke Discovery Centre on February 25 from 1pm to 4pm.

The consultation closes on March 28.

Both Basingstoke hospital and HCC have been asked for a comment.

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