Agenda item

Members of the public may ask questions or make statements at this meeting if they have given notice and provided the text to democraticservices.east@northyorks.gov.uk no later than midday on 27 July 2026, three working days before the day of the meeting. Each speaker should limit themselves to three minutes on any item. 

 

If you are exercising your right to speak at this meeting, but do not wish to be recorded, please inform the Chair who will instruct those taking a recording to cease whilst you speak.

From Caroline Garrod

Cauwood is not just a service; it is a necessity for the disabled adults who attend and for the families who depend on it.

 

This centre is a lifeline for those who use it. It is the only one of its kind in the Ryedale and provides dedicated changing facilities, including the only fully accessible changing space in Malton. Cauwood also holds National Autism Accreditation status and offers gardens, sensory room, dedicated art room and breakout rooms. The main hall has access to the gardens, wildlife area and orchard, all of which are accessible.

 

The staff who dedicate their working lives to Cauwood are the heart of the centre. Their care, experience and commitment provide vital stability for the disabled adults and families who rely on them every day. Without them, that essential support would be lost.

 

The disabled adults of Ryedale need somewhere they can go each day where they feel safe, are cared for with dignity and respect, and can meet their peers and enjoy activities in a friendly, relaxed environment.

 

Not all disabled adults want to be out in the community. Some need the freedom and security of a safe space like Cauwood, where they can spend their days, use a sensory room, relax, be cared for and express themselves in ways that make them happy. A community setting does not meet everyone’s needs. Some struggle with noise and can feel overwhelmed in places such as cafes or garden centres. Others have physical disabilities that make being out in the community challenging, particularly in relation to personal care. Cauwood gives them the space, support and activities they need to enjoy their lives to their fullest potential.

 

As a parent, I ask you to listen to us and to other parents. Please engage with us and take the time to understand what we and the clients need. Do not make assumptions simply because the current trend is community-based day care. For many that is not always the right answer.

 

Cauwood was named after Reverend Cauwood, whose ethos and vision were to create a day care service to help support disabled adults. Let’s not forget that, especially as the service has worked and met the user’s needs for the past 35 years.

 

Over the past few months, we have spoken with former workers, people whose families used to use the centre, and other families of disabled adults who did not know Cauwood existed but, would like to send their loved ones there now and in the future. Please listen to the families, and let’s keep Cauwood in the way it was created for now and for future years.

 

By working together, we may be able to develop Cauwood into something even stronger and more impressive for the people who need it most.

 

My plea to you as councillors is this: please do not close Cauwood until parents have full knowledge and written confirmation of the proposed new location, so that we can agree together that the site will offer everything the current Cauwood offers, and potentially more. The Cauwood ethos and name need to be retained and developed to meet the future needs of all service users, both now and in the years ahead.

 

Caroline and Michael Garrod and on behalf of other Service Users at Cauwood Day Centre who could not be here today.

 

From Stuart Moss

Cauwood is not about budgets, buildings, and balance sheets. It is about the lives of the people who depend on this daycare centre every single day.

 

For many disabled people, Cauwood is not simply a building. It is a place where they feel safe, where they are understood, where they have friends, purpose, routine, and dignity. It is where they laugh, learn, grow, and belong.

 

If Cauwood closes, it is not just a service that disappears. It is a community. It is a vital lifeline.

 

Behind every person who goes through the doors is a family who depends on this support. Parents who have spent years fighting for opportunities for their children. Carers who give everything they have, day after day, often without rest. Cauwood gives them peace of mind, knowing their loved one is safe, happy, and cared for with compassion and respect.

 

Without it, many families will face impossible choices. Some will be forced to give up work. Others will experience overwhelming stress, exhaustion, and isolation. The emotional, financial, and physical toll will be immense.

 

For those who attend Cauwood, losing it could mean losing friendships, losing independence, and losing the routine that provides comfort and stability. Many autistic people rely on familiar environments and trusted relationships to feel secure. Taking that away can have a devastating impact on their mental health, confidence, development and wellbeing.

 

We should be creating an inclusive society. But inclusion is not just a word—it is a commitment. It means ensuring disabled people have the same opportunities to live fulfilling lives, build relationships, develop skills, and participate in their communities. Closing Cauwood sends the opposite message. It tells disabled people that the support they rely on is expendable.

 

What kind of society do we want to be? One that measures success by the money it saves, or one that measures success by how it cares for its most vulnerable people?

 

The true cost of closing Cauwood cannot be measured in pounds. It will be measured in lost opportunities, increased loneliness, struggling families, declining wellbeing, and lives made harder instead of better.

 

Cauwood daycare centre is not a luxury. It is a necessity, an essential service. It provides independence, dignity, social connection, and hope. It prevents isolation. It supports families. It enriches lives every single day.

 

So today, I plead with you: do not close Cauwood. Listen to us as the parents of users of Cauwood as the voices of the people who rely on it, as most of them are unable to express their feelings in words. Listen to the families and carers. Protect this place of care, compassion, and community. Invest in its future.

 

Every disabled person deserves to belong. Every family deserves support. And every one of us has a responsibility to stand up for those whose voices are too often overlooked.

 

Please don't let this door close—not just on a building, but on the people whose lives depend on it.

 

From Di Keal

I speak on behalf of Norton on Derwent Town Council and Pickering Town Council (as the Mayor of Pickering is unable to attend today) Norton, Malton and Pickering Councils have all written to the North Yorkshire Council following unanimous votes opposing the closure of Cauwood Day Centre and appealing to councillors to halt the closure.

 

It has become obvious over the past few months that with the proposed closure of Cauwood by North Yorkshire Council that you are following a national trend in closing facilities for some of the most vulnerable people in our society.

 

It has also become obvious that you intended this closure to ‘slip through the back door’ and be agreed by North Yorkshire council with a minimum of consultation with the families of those directly affected by the proposed closure. Fortunately these families and the communities of Malton, Norton & Pickering and further afield have embraced their cause and rallied in support of this hugely valued facility.

 

Cauwood provides a purpose built base for its users which, managed by highly skilled staff, caters specifically for their needs. The service users have numerous complex needs and all are admirably catered for by a dedicated staff team, yet this council seems determined to rip these people away from their familiar setting and place them into other ‘facilities’ some of which are totally inappropriate for individuals with such complex needs. Some of these alternatives involve travelling to other parts of the county or placing people in other care settings which do not have the facilities to meet the individuals needs.

 

So my questions today are simple:

 

I understand that the NYC intends to invest in an all singing, all dancing Extra Care Facility in Malton – which is of course very welcome - but when is this facility due to be built and opened in Malton? And do you intend to create a purpose built facility as part of this development that will become the new home for Cauwood?

 

Secondly, will the Cauwood Centre remain open until such time as building work on this facility is due to commence?

 

Once there is a timetable for the build and if the service users then have to move for practical reasons, can you guarantee that they will be provided with a suitable LOCAL facility on a temporary basis where everyone can be relocated and supported as they are now to avoid major disruption to both service users and staff?

 

The likely scenario is that it will take several years to plan and develop the new extra care centre - so we need a secure guarantee that this will be the case.

 

Members have today seen that hundreds of people in Malton, Norton and Pickering have supported Caroline Garrod and the other parents in their bid to save the Cauwood Centre from closure. The petition instigated by Caroline and the other families, that has been received today, stands at 15,000 plus signatures and rising.

 

As you have heard from other speakers the service users all have very specific and very different needs, all of which are managed by a hugely skilled staff team – many need two members of staff to support them and in one case three staff members are required. This is NOT the sort of support that can be provided in other settings, which are also unlikely to have the specialised equipment that is required to assist with care.

 

The truth is Cauwood is invaluable, not only to the individuals and families, but also to you as representatives of the council. Trying to lever individuals into totally inappropriate care settings is very likely to fail, alongside being more expensive – it is likely to result in a reduction in quality of life for service users and risks putting even more pressure on families potentially leading to a crisis – which again will lead to escalating costs for the council.

 

Irrespective of the hugely damaging impact that this proposal to close will have on the individuals and families who use Cauwood – it is also a false economy, which will cost the council more in the long run.

 

Finally – you have heard from the families affected by this proposal today. I would appeal to you to listen to them and consider the impact that your actions will have on these families if this closure goes ahead.

 

They are the experts in the care of their loved ones – they must and should be at the centre of this debate – we appeal to you to not let North Yorkshire Council Executive ride rough shod over some of the most vulnerable people who live in our community.

 

From Lisa Keenan, Ryedale Special Families

Ryedale Special Families support the campaign to keep Cauwood open to provide an appropriate and diverse range of care options to disabled people in Ryedale.

 

Ryedale Special Families provides services to families of disabled young people up to the age of 25. Cauwood is a service that young adults would have the option of attending after leaving Ryedale Special Families, so it is very concerning to us that the council is proposing its closure. This will limit the options disabled adults have for their essential care needs at a time when many adult care services are reducing, as the Guardian newspaper recently reported.

 

In proposing this decision, one of the reports the council prepared is an Equality Impact assessment. This assessment stated that 'there is NO ADVERSE IMPACT' identified and there is no potential for discrimination. The immediate negative impact identified will be mitigated by 'working sensitively and collaboratively with the current people to identify alternative care' HAS will continuously monitor, there will be a steering group set up to coordinate and monitor and counselling and advocacy will be available to people and staff involved.

 

I feel that these statements greatly underestimate the impact the closure would have, and that it can all be mitigated by the above actions. Considering how initially the closure was planned and relayed to the people involved, we do not have confidence that these mitigations would be put in place or be effective.

 

The closure of the accessible Changing Places toilet has not been mentioned in the Equality Impact Assessment and this is an error that needs to be corrected. This fully accessible toilet is the ONLY one in Malton (considering that there are 3 in Pickering). Other reports do mention the closure and mitigate it by saying alternatives will be looked at, with no further details. This disregard for specialist facilities is unacceptable. They also talk about the toilets low usage - on average once or twice a week. This gives an unfair impression. The toilet may be used once or twice a week but it is essential for those disabled people who need that specialist facility. Imagine saying the public toilets in Malton were to be closed with no alternative planned. Just because it relates to the care of a few disabled people does not mean it is less important. North Yorkshire Council should be promoting its accessible and specialist facilities, not closing them.

 

The Council's Market Position Statement has three priorities for adult social care in North Yorkshire:

 

1.Opportunities for everyone, everywhere.

2.My time and experiences are valued.

3.My home, my community, my choice.

 

These are priorities I think we would all agree on and it is imperative that the council stick to these priorities and reconsider their proposal to close Cauwood.

 

Statement from Mencap – not in attendance

Mencap is deeply concerned by the proposed closure of Cauwood Day Centre, a specialist service used by adults with learning disabilities, autism and complex needs in Ryedale.

 

For many people, day services like Cauwood are not optional extras. They are essential support that provides routine, purpose, social connection, friendships and opportunities to participate in community life. They also provide families and unpaid carers with vital respite and the confidence that their loved ones are safe, supported and able to thrive.

 

We know from our work with people with a learning disability and their families across England, Wales and Northern Ireland that when day services are reduced or closed, people can become more isolated, more anxious and less able to participate in everyday life. Once specialist services are lost, they can be extremely difficult to replace.

 

What is particularly striking about Cauwood is the complexity of the needs it supports. Families tell us that people attend the service because alternative community provision is often not accessible or appropriate for their support needs. Campaigners have highlighted that many attendees require specialist facilities, including wheelchair access and high levels of support.

 

We recognise that councils across the country are operating under immense financial pressure and are being asked to make difficult decisions about adult social care. However, disabled people should not be the ones who bear the cost of a system that is chronically underfunded. Local and national leaders must work together to protect the specialist support that enables people to live fulfilling and connected lives.

 

Before any decision is made about the future of Cauwood, it is vital that the voices of the people who use the service, their families and carers are heard and meaningfully considered. The test should not be whether a building can close. The test should be whether people with learning disabilities and autism will have access to support that genuinely meets their needs, protects their wellbeing and enables them to participate fully in their communities.

 

People with a learning disability deserve the same opportunities for connection, creativity, friendship and independence as everyone else. We urge councillors to carefully consider the impact that losing this specialist service could have on some of the most vulnerable people in the community and on the families who support them every day.

 

Response from Abi Barron - Corporate Director, Health and Adult Services

Thank you for the statements.

 

Firstly, we absolutely acknowledge that Cauwood is much more than a building. Through the engagement and consultation undertaken, the heart of Cauwood has shone through, Cauwood is about the people, the staff and the families and carers and its identity is something we are passionate about not losing.

 

We agree that the service is important to people who use it and their families, we also agree that the staff who work in the service do a fantastic and valuable job in supporting people. Whilst the proposal is to close the existing building, it is not about closing the whole service and our intention is to retain a refreshed Cauwood service and the staff who currently use the service.  This service would provide the flexibility required to meet the wide-ranging needs of the people who currently attend and hopefully others in the future, securing local building provision with enriching activities and also offering a broad and bespoke range of activities out in the community, delivered by a familiar and trusted team of staff.  Retaining the Cauwood identity is important to us and our aim is to create a broader range of opportunities for people to receive their day care in a way which suits them and their families’ needs and helps them to achieve the outcomes they wish.

 

The work we have done during the consultation was always planned to take place, and there is no intention of us closing the building until the alternative offer is in place and people have completed their transition. 

 

We are working on the development of the new services, something which we have spoken to families about and wish to work with them to refine before we close the building at Cauwood, we see this as being very bespoke to individual’s needs.

 

The addition of extra care in Malton is a much-needed resource and we would like to include a community hub, much like many of our other extra care facilities across North Yorkshire, we see this as being something we can create which adds and further enhances the new Cauwood service and we don’t envisaging this replacing the Cauwood service but being an addition to it.

 

Once we have a decision on the building then the extra care build programme can commence, this will initially include planning application and the procurement of a development partner, once this is done we can confirm timescales.   

 

There is a Changing Places in the Cauwood building, this is only accessible when the building is open and staffed.  Current usage is very low and has only been used once in the last 4 weeks, this is not out of keeping with previous use. There is a radar key disabled toilet facility in Malton and changing place facilities in Pickering.  In the longer term we would look to include a Changing Places within a new extra care development.

 

We are listening to and working with families and are committed to continuing to do so, we do not want this decision to create an adverse impact on the people we support and by continuing to work with them and their committed family members we are sure that we can achieve a really good outcome for people. 

 

We are also keen to continue to work with other local care providers and voluntary and community sector organisations to grow and develop the new Cauwood service and create a really good offer to people who require our support in the local area. 

 

The petition asks that “We are calling on North Yorkshire Council to protect the service Cauwood provides - whether in its current building or a suitable new one - and to safeguard specialist day care provision for the Ryedale area”.  The proposals we are putting before Executive are in accordance with this.