'Give us a helping hand', urges dementia centre

The manager of a daycare centre for people with dementia has warned it will close within weeks unless it receives financial support.

Endike Community Care, a registered charity based in Ashton Close, Hull, accepts private clients as well as those referred through the city council.

Appealing to Hull City Council for support, Eileen Wright said: "We are hanging on by the skin of our teeth. Please give us a helping hand to keep going."

The council insisted it would be "unlawful" and "unfair" on other providers to intervene and provide an ongoing subsidy, adding the charity had been given help to develop a sustainable business plan.

Ms Wright said the service, which opened 30 years ago, provides much needed respite for families.

"It can be exhausting caring for someone you love with dementia," she said. "We provide high quality care, in a safe, pleasant environment, allowing relatives to just breathe.

"They can go off shopping, complete a few jobs or do something for themselves to unwind, knowing their loved one is being well looked after."

Last summer, Hull City Council confirmed Endike Community Care had received a time-limited grant from the authority, which ended in September 2023.

Since then, Ms Wright said the charity had been looking to other grant providers for financial help.

"Nowhere is giving out big grants which is what we need to stay open," she said. "We support some of the most vulnerable people in the area. We need the council's support."

Ms Wright called on the council to invest in the service, warning: "If you don't support us, we will close and a lot of people in Hull and the surrounding area will suffer."

A Hull City Council spokesperson said it commissions 17 organisations to "provide the day care that residents need".

"Support has been provided through the Sector Connect Partnership to Endike Community Care to assist with developing a sustainable business plan for the organisation's future, whilst it also has the benefit of operating from a council-owned community building.

"It is unlawful and unfair on other day care providers who operate within the same sector for the council to intervene and provide an ongoing subsidy to one provider."

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