PARENTS have warned that children with some of the most challenging disabilities will suffer “negative psychological impact” if their current care is changed.

The concerned parents were responding to plans to “privatise” the remaining Brighton and Hove City Council learning disabilities accommodation service for up to 51 people.

Green party councillors said families affected by the proposed services were “deeply worried” while union bosses said the cost cutting will lead to a reduced service and worsened working conditions for staff.

Council officers said existing staff would transfer over to new care providers to maintain “stability” and that the current council-run system was costing more than other authorities without necessarily delivering a better service.

Under the proposals set to be finalised at Thursday's policy and resources committee, an alternative provider will be sought for 11 council-run accommodation, care and support centres in a bid to save £640,000 over the next four years.

A further council-run residential care site in Beaconsfield Villas will close and the service transferred to The Beach House in Westbourne Villas, Hove, also council run.

One consultation response read out by Green convenor Phelim MacCafferty at Tuesday’s health and wellbeing board said parents wanted to maintain the current status because further changes would have “a negative psychological impact on all service users”.

Some families told the council consultation they would prefer the current service to remain but council officials said that was not a financially viable option.

At the same meeting Brighton and Hove CCG’s independent clinical member Jennifer Oates said: “I’m quite concerned what £400 less of care looks like, what will the independent provider not be doing that the council is doing?”

The GMB warned that private providers could offer reduced staffing levels, reduced quality of care and reduced wages for staff in order to make the savings proposed.

Union convenor Mark Turner said that some of the sites could be too small for private firms to run profitably.

Council officers said savings could be found in new recruits being taken on under the new providers’ pay scales, dedicated care firms using their staff more flexibly to reduce agency costs and increasing support for users to live more independently.

Savings could also be achieved in reducing the council’s current staffing levels which were considered “high”.

Mr Turner warned that further moves in transferring council staff over to the private sector could see industrial relations deteriorate “very quickly”.

Councillor Karen Barford, health and wellbeing co-lead member, said it was not a “nice decision” but the council could not offer “a status quo” and still meet projected budget cuts.

She said: “We won’t switch to a new provider unless we are confident they can provide the level of need a person has.”