Member Article

Local brain injury charity concern as funding cuts hit vulnerable people

A local charity is warning that vulnerable people affected by brain injuries are being denied access to vital support services as a result of cuts in public funding and welfare benefits.

Mark Hollinghurst, chair of the Yorkshire East Coast branch of Headway, the Brain Injury Association, which helps people rebuild their lives following brain injury, is also concerned that the charity’s long-term ability to support an increasing number of people in need of help could be threatened if funding continues to be reduced.

The charity, which has a branch in Scarborough, is reacting to the findings of a new report - which coincides with nationwide Brain Injury Week - issued by the national Headway organisation, entitled A ticking time bomb: The false economy of cuts to brain injury support services.

The study of more than 500 people directly affected by brain injury has revealed that in the past two years 48% of people receiving rehabilitation and support to regain their independence have lost access to vital services as a result of cuts to local authority or NHS funding.

Published to mark Action for Brain Injury Week, the report provides evidence that threats to local authority budgets and welfare benefits reform are having a detrimental effect on the physical and psychological wellbeing of brain injury survivors and their carers.

“This report confirms what we are experiencing at a local level,” said Mark Hollinghurst. “People who desperately need help to cope with life after brain injury or rehabilitation services to regain lost skills are being abandoned.

“This study makes it abundantly clear that the simultaneous raft of funding cuts and welfare reforms are causing harm to the lives of some of society’s most vulnerable people.

“We recognise local authorities have difficult decisions to make due to reduced funding from central government, but cutting rehabilitation services is a false economy as it is reduces the chances of people with brain injury regaining their independence.

“It also puts greater pressure on families who are struggling to cope with insufficient support. If they can no longer cope, the alternative for some could be for their loved one to move into residential care, which can cost thousands of pounds a week.”

More than two thirds (70%) of respondents in the survey stated they will require increased long-term support from the state in future if they do not receive the help they need now.

• Almost half (48%) of people living with brain injury have lost access to vital rehabilitation and support services due to a lack of local authority funding
• 70% believe loss of access to support services will lead to greater reliance on state support in long term
• 70% feel that their long-term support needs will increase if they do not have access to the support they need now
• 70% are concerned about ability to cope financially due to welfare benefits reform, with 75% fearful of further cuts in future
• More than half report a deterioration in their quality of life

Charities struggling to cope with reduced support from local authorities:

• 57% of Headway groups believe changes to local authority support have already had a direct impact on their ability to provide support services
• 83% are concerned about their ability to provide support services in the long term if local authority budgets cut further
• 89% are forced to use charity reserves and additional charity funds to keep services running

The report also highlighted the mounting pressure on charities who are struggling to survive, with 85% concerned about their long-term future if funding continues to be cut. In addition, 89% are being forced to use charity reserves and additional charity funds to maintain vital services.

Mark Hollinghurst continued: “A brain injury can happen to anyone at any time. At Headway, we know that with the right help at the right time there can be life after brain injury.

“Unless action is taken to enable people to access the vital support needed and to ensure those services survive, more and more people will be cut out of society and tax payers will be left footing the bill for caring for those without the means to care for themselves.”

Headway Yorkshire East Coast covers a wide area encompassing Scarborough, Pickering, Malton, Bridlington, Filey and Driffield, and currently hosts talks and events in Scarborough.

For more information on the charity visit http://www.headway.org.uk/Branches/yorkshire-east-coast.aspx or email headwayeastcoast@hotmail.co.uk and phone 01302 308688.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Mark Hollinghurst .