THE announcement of closures to day centres across the Borders has been described as a “communications disaster”.

Earlier this month, news of Scottish Borders Council’s plans to axe centres used by the elderly and adults with learning disabilities sent shockwaves through communities.

But Tweeddale Councillor Heather Anderson says the move is actually “positive” but it had been handled “disastrously”.

It is said that when elected Councillors read the headlines in the press they demanded answers from Council officers.

The day centre faced with closure in Peebles is Kingsmeadows, which plays host to a number of groups providing services for the elderly and people with learning disabilities.

Chairman of Peebles Community Council, Lawrie Hayworth said: “Obviously we have seen stuff in the press, there is a strategic review that is being undertaken with regards to what the Council does with the Kingsmeadows Day Centre.

“We are aware as a community council of this review and if it is the policy Scottish Borders Council to either relocate the services being delivered from there, or just to wind them up then it would be good to know.

“And then as a community we need to discuss how we can find a way of maintaining those services and growing them. We would like to hear from Scottish Borders Council what the plan is.”

Councillor Heather Anderson criticised the way the news was delivered saying “you should never announce you are closing something until you have replaced or improved it”.

She added: “One of the things that is happening is they are moving towards a local area co-ordination model.

"I wrote a booklet about local area co-ordination as a model for supporting people with disabilities in 2002 when it was leading edge, so it is really good that the Borders have caught on some years later. The model is the best way of supporting people; it’s about putting individualised support of group supports around the person rather than driving them to a building.

“To put it politely this is a communications disaster. If the story had been handled properly, would have been about the better things that are happening to people who used to use the building rather than the building being closed."

Councillor Tatler echoed this adding that it is a review of how people get the best out of the facilities. “I think what will happen, there’s very few people actually use the facilities within there and they may continue to use those facilities or they may go elsewhere and use other facilities or be supported in another way. My concern is what is what happens with the building.”

Mr Hayworth stressed that the community council must be kept informed.

He added: “We as a community would like to be engaged to get the very best for those service users. Purely with older people, yes you can say it’s individualised, but isolation is one of the big issues. If you are not meeting together there is real danger that if you close a building then you remove that structure of people meeting and being supported together and supporting each other.”

Council officers have agreed to talk to community councils about the plans going forward.