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Care Opinion

Cancellation of bus service

Posted By TRANSPORT STORY

"Cancellation of bus service"

About: Hawthorns Adult Centre

(as a parent/guardian),

My son is disabled and spends most of his time in a wheelchair, he has attended Hawthornes adult centre since the early 2000s, but has been using the transport department for HSC for almost 50 years.

Recently in Carrickfergus the bus that usually collects my son for the centre has been cancelled and we have been told a driver has left and we cannot get a driver until maybe May 2024. Bearing in mind the bus has stopped in April. Because of the health conditions my son has, he relies on going to the centre Monday to Friday as this is his routine. 

My daughter has had to take a week off her work to transport my son to and from the centre as transport do not have any busses or drivers, meanwhile in Belfast they have all state of the art brand new buses whilst we have an old bus that consistently breaks down and further upsets my son's routine.

I am extremely disappointed with the HSC transport department for treating not only my son but all the other people who attend the centre. I feel very sorry for the mothers of their kids who attend the centre if they do rely on transport for their children to get to get there.

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Responses

Response from Helen T Thompson, Senior Day Services Lead Manager, Mental Health and Learning Disability, NHSCT 6 days ago
Helen T Thompson
Senior Day Services Lead Manager, Mental Health and Learning Disability,
NHSCT

Submitted on 13/05/2024 at 12:07
Published on Care Opinion at 12:14

Thank you for your feedback regarding transport at Hawthorns Adult Centre and I am sorry to hear how disappointed you are feeling at present.

I understand that there are staffing challenges in providing Trust transport to Hawthorns Adult Centre at the moment. Our Transport Department alongside Hawthorns staff have been working hard to get this service up and running again and continue to try and source alternative transport providers, to ensure that everyone who normally uses the bus can continue to access the centre.

Kind regards

Helen Thompson

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