HATE CRIMES: AN INCONVENIENT MARRIAGE

Update:

This blog is now dormant but you can see all the old posts and a lot of new material at Crime Scraps Review.

http://crimescraps2.wordpress.com

An inconvenient marriage between finance and philosophy has brought doubt and turmoil into the lives of vulnerable people.

The philosophy apparently backed by the government and local authorities is that “people with learning difficulties” should live in the “community”, and be able to walk to the pub, and shops. This will apparently improve their lifestyle from the CSCI inspector’s report of EXCELLENT to what I don’t know.

How can you improve on excellent?
The fact that pottery and woodwork take second place to shopping and drinking in pubs under this scheme is perhaps typical of this government, and their warped notions.
Is the community ready for our vulnerable relatives, who are for the most part more trusting than your average person?

Will our relatives’ new homes be placed in those deprived areas of small towns that already face enormous problems with their bored disaffected youth?

Follow the link below to see the possible scale of the problem.

http://www.disabilitynow.org.uk/the-hate-crime-dossier

I don’t claim to know the details of the funding problem with “care in the community” funded from a different source than “intentional communities”. One is funded by central funding and the other from local authority funding.

I do know that this financial anomaly and this philosophical theory have come together at a very convenient time for some, because the rural sites bequeathed for the use of the charity’s beneficiaries have become incredibly valuable.

One of my sources informed me a parent was told by an official “I can’t afford to live on Exmoor and it may be that your son won’t be able to live there either.”

The charity trustees sold in December 2005 a site near Sevenoaks in Kent, and came away with £3.9 million. The developers then built about £40 million of property on the site.

It was too isolated for people with learning difficulties, but the location was ideal for the very rich who paid £3.2 million and upwards for the luxury houses on the development. [There were some more affordable apartments and mews cottages from about £500,000-£750,000; I think my eyes became a bit blurry when I read all of this.]

You might agree with me that it is strangely ironic that while vulnerable people are being thrust into society, the rich are seizing the opportunity to isolate themselves on the very same rural site away from that society.

I am pretty certain that in years to come we will want to go back to the village concept started by Peter Forbes, because the care in the community option:

1) Will be more expensive to monitor smaller more scattered units.
2) It will not be possible to obtain sufficient suitable staff.
3) There will be scandals such as the tragic death of Steven Hoskin in Truro. [See link]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/cornwall/6748647.stm

And you might find this article interesting and quite disturbing:
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/health/features/article2804949.ece

What can you do to help stop the closure of Blackerton village?

Firstly comment on the blog, and if you feel care in the community is the way to go put your point of view.
Secondly if you agree with me that it is a disaster waiting to happen email my MP Ben Bradshaw at bradshawb@parliament.uk

Or the local MP for Blackerton, Nick Harvey at harveyn@parliament.uk
The last time I was in contact with Nick he was very much against the closure, and supports the campaign to keep Blackerton open.

Or you could contact the management at:
http://www.care-ltd.co.uk/contact/fullcontact.htm

Chief Executive Officer: Patrick Wallace 9 Weir Road, Kibworth, Leicester LE8 0QL

What I have learned from all this is that charities and housing associations are really just like any other business, with some CEO’s earning six figure salaries.

How many of the general public realize this when they so generously put their hands in their pockets?

How many people have bequeathed legacies to CARE over the years simply because they believed in the ethos of the village community?

Apparently the trustees can ignore the ethos of the charity and go ahead with the closure. I believe this is wrong and I think Blackerton and the other villages should be left to continue their excellent work.

"It's home, I love it here.... we must save Care village"

Kylie Jarvis, aged 22, a resident of CARE Shangton who has Down's Syndrome