Feedback from in-person service-user engagement events at Chesil Lodge and Newman Court
Background
From 12 March to 7 May 2025, Hampshire County Council invited residents, partners, and stakeholders to provide their views on options to change and reduce some local services to help the Authority address a £97.6 million budget shortfall for 2025-26.
This included proposals for the County Council’s HCC Care and Support Service to cease running the older adult day care services at Chesil Lodge (Winchester), and at Newman Court (Basingstoke). Should these proposed changes go ahead, people currently attending day care services and their carers would continue to have their eligible needs met either through these services transferring to an independent provider, or through alternative care provision.
An online consultation was held for people to voice their views on the proposals. However, not all of the people who attend Day Services at Chesil Lodge and Newman Court are internet users. Therefore, in addition to the online consultation, a series of 23 in-person engagement events were run with people who access the Day Services, and their carers / family members to explain the proposals to them and enable them to give their views verbally.
All comments from the engagement events have been reviewed and analysed into key themes.
Overall, these key themes reflect the findings from the written online consultation responses, but unsurprisingly, with more emphasis on the personal situation of the people attending the Day Services, and on their positive experience of the service (and, by inference, what they would miss out on should the service cease).
Further detail on the engagement activity
The engagement events were held between 12 March and 7 May in the form of meetings, individual bookable appointments, and small group feedback sessions.
They were facilitated by senior managers from HCC Care and Support Services and care management colleagues, and in some cases were also attended by representatives from Voiceability, an independent advocacy service (giving people the opportunity to express their views freely to someone independent - i.e. outside Hampshire County Council).
People accessing the Day Services and their carers / families could attend multiple engagement sessions, so we do not know exactly how many people participated in total. However, the number of slots available at engagement events exceeded take-up (events ran at approximately 50-65% capacity), meaning there were adequate sessions for people to give their views in this way if they wished.
As people were given the chance to feed back in their own way, style of feedback ranged from brief individual comments through to longer more narrative style responses (e.g. containing information about themselves, their views and experiences), and also to more collective group opinions. This feedback has all been analysed via thematic coding - in the case of the group feedback, taking account of level of consensus as well as different views from group participants (as far as possible). The themed analysis indicates that around 900 separate points were made (most being made by multiple people, and most people making multiple points within their comments).
It is worth noting that a small minority of people attending the engagement meetings were suffering from more advanced mental deterioration or learning difficulties and were not able to offer a view. However, it is likely that the views expressed by others would be shared by these individuals. Potentially also linked to cognitive deterioration, despite attending engagement sessions, a few people attending the Day Services reported being unaware of the proposals.
Key themes
The points made by people attending the Day Services and their carers / family members covered 5 key areas.
Key theme 1: positive experience of the service
Positive comments about the service were by far the most common type of feedback: there were numerous mentions from people about what the service delivered and how they felt about it. There was no negative feedback about the service itself from anyone.
The most commonly mentioned aspects were general positivity around attending the Day Services, enjoyment of the activities and stimulation provided, the friendships, companionship and sociability, and praise for the staff or the relationship the staff had with service users. Other aspects such as the meals and the transport were also mentioned, although not quite as often.
A high number of comments also reflected how much the Day Services were needed by carers / family members, and by the people who attended them. The strength of feeling around the value of the service was further emphasised by some specific references to it being a ‘lifeline’ or a ‘God-send’.
Illustrative quotes from respondents
“…before she came to Chesil Lodge she would spend days at home alone with very little social interaction. She says that without the service her mental health and wellbeing would have gone downhill very quickly. She describes it as a lifeline both mentally and physically. She enjoys the laughing, the jokes and games.”
“Carer describes the service as a lifeline and says that what is so important is that she knows she has the time, and that her husband loves coming, as he is a sociable character. She said that the staff are lovely.”
“All spoke of the socialisation, stimulation and companionship they get from attending the service. Enjoying the activities and very much looking forward to the VE day celebrations planned for next week.”
“Her husband has his own health concerns and would find caring for her full time very difficult. He says that this gives him the chance to have a break. He says that he finds that she is calmer and less frustrated by her condition when she has been at Chesil Lodge. Having her there gives him peace of mind.”
“Carer praised staff stating that, they know what they are doing in terms of providing personal care, transport support and there is a real sense of belonging as a community.”
“Some carers reported that they are totally reliant on the day centre as it gets [name] out of the house, and they can get time for themselves. Many reported that, at times they just need those 5 hours to catch up on much needed sleep, play golf and meet up with friends.”
Less widely expressed themes around specific aspects of the service were also evident, such as the location, knowing the person attending would be safe, the calming influence of attending the Day Service / agitation or anxiety when not there, access to other personal or medical care facilitated through the Service, importance of continuity of care / familiarity of surroundings, and the centres being preferred by people attending them over others they may have tried.
Key theme 2: impacts on people attending the Day Services
In addition to the positive feedback about the Day Services, many comments were more specific about the negative impacts that the planned closures could have on people who currently attend them.
The largest group of such comments were simply general negative impacts: many simply stating that attendees would miss the services, or be worse off without them.
However, a number of comments were more specific about the potential impact on the people who attend the Day Services themselves. The most evident themes were loss of social interaction and subsequent loneliness, and potential closures leaving current attendees unable to go out, with nowhere to go, or simply being left housebound in front of television.
Illustrative quotes from respondents
“It would be a disaster for the person attending if the day centre were to close.”
“Would miss Chesil… coming here is a God-send.”
“Proposal doesn’t sound good, want to stay here. Don’t know if there is anywhere else.”
“Carer said to close the Day Service would be devastating”
“Would be stuck indoors if I was not able to attend a day services, and alone at home…. would become isolated and be unable to meet friends.”
“Without the day service, he would spend all day in front of the TV, which he doubts would be beneficial. He would be bored at home due to his disability, as he needs assistance to go out.”
Slightly less common themes involved the potential impact on the physical or mental health (including impact on nutrition) of the person accessing the Day Services, fear of physical or mental deterioration without the services, and consequent risk of going into long term or residential care.
Illustrative quotes from respondents
“Worried about mum .. as otherwise [she] will go downhill quickly as [she] will be stuck at home. Feels this is the best environment to help people carry on and do activities and without it [she] would deteriorate quicker.”
“In many of the cases if they were unable to attend the service and have a meal then felt their nutritional needs would suffer as eating and drinking whilst alone at home is inconsistent.”
Other less common themes mentioned negative impacts which were more practically focused: fear that any potential alternative services would cost more, or deliver less, or that they would not be local and harder to get to. Impact of change itself (e.g. going somewhere new / finding new alternatives) was also mentioned.
Illustrative quotes from respondents
“[Carer] unable to understand how a saving could be made if the service closed as HCC would still need to pay for care that would probably be more expensive or not as good quality.”
“Very convenient and would struggle to travel to a service further away.”
“If you don’t find a provider then you will be stuck with the same problem. A new provider will want to make a profit so costs will be higher.”
“Switching to another service means he would need to adjust to a new routine and staff, which is a concern for him.”
Key theme 3: other impacts
Beyond the impact on the immediate group or people attending the Day Services, some comments were made relating to other impacts of the potential closures.
The most frequently mentioned was the impact on carers and families, not only in terms of their practical respite needs (such as time to go shopping or see friends), but also in terms of their own mental wellbeing.
Illustrative quotes from respondents
“When [person] attends the service this is the only time carer has to do everything around the home and enjoy their own activities and time with friends. …. Attending the service gives carer essential ‘me’ time.”
“A carer reported they will not last a week if the day centre was to close permanently.”
There were also comments (although slightly fewer) about impacts on the healthcare system in terms of potential closures leading to higher costs elsewhere, or other knock-on implications around resourcing alternative care.
Illustrative quotes from respondents
“Doctors will be overwhelmed with people breaking down and needing them if this goes ahead.”
“If my family member went into care, it would cost a lot more and have a bigger impact on the HCC budget.”
“Additional strain on Mental health services and a greater need on 24 hour care provision.”
A few additional comments were made about negative impact on staff.
Key theme 4: suggestions related to the proposals
Very few comments were made about alternatives to closing Chesil Lodge and Newman Court.
The most common of these was the suggestion that people currently attending could pay more to keep the service open.
Illustrative quote from a respondent
“Majority of users are self-funders; they would like to explore the possibility of an extra charge to keep the day centre running.”
There were also a couple of suggestions about improving speed of referrals into the Day Services to maintain service use levels. These were supplemented by comments raising questions about why referrals into the service took so long, and surprise at the dropping numbers of people attending the Day Centres.
Illustrative quotes from respondents
“Found out of the services through Google search, had to wait 3 months to join the service. Feel like Hampshire is impacting the decision already by not allowing new services users to join.”
“Took 5 months to get a place for my husband. Why is that the case if not enough people to keep service going?”
Other suggestions, often made only 2 or 3 times, involved saving money elsewhere instead - sometimes with mentions of specific places (such as investment in community centres or roundabouts), and sometimes about County Council-wide operational savings (typically involving salary cuts for higher paid senior council officers).
Illustrative quotes from respondents
“There is a social club in Oakridge that has gone into liquidation and they are going to spend 1.4million to do it up. That is your saving there.”
“Commented on the wages of some chief officers in the county council as being disgustingly high and cannot see how such high wages can be justified in a publicly funded organisation.”
Key theme 5: general comments
In addition to positive comments about the service, impacts of the proposal, and suggestions for alternative courses of action, many comments were also made that were more general in nature.
The largest group of these were comments about the personal circumstances of the people attending the Day Services and their carers / families – such as their state of health or their home circumstances. These all added weight to the need for these services by those who rely on them but were typically contextual rather than service- or proposal-specific so have not been detailed further in this document.
Beyond this, key relevant themes included a general negative reaction to the proposal, or plea to keep the services open. There were also relatively common comments expressing a desire to attend the service more often (including Saturdays and Sundays).
Illustrative quotes from respondents
“I don’t need a consultation to talk about what we need. We already have exactly what we need at Newman Court so leave it alone.”
“I am so disappointed with this. I like it here.”
“These places are so important, he would like to increase the time his partner attends.”
Many people attending the Day Services and their carers / families raised questions concerning costs / finances of running the services or finding alternatives, and around likelihood of finding alternative providers if the service is not currently financially viable. There were also observations that the proposed £250,000 savings felt negligible compared to the loss of the benefits, or in the larger scheme of things.
Illustrative quotes from respondents
“I would like to see the estimated cost of making that saving. The figures are not adding up.”
“The savings you are hoping to make are just a drop in the ocean compared to what you have to save. But the impact to us is massive.”
Further questions, voiced less frequently, included why numbers of people attending the Day Services have dropped, and questions about transport, alternative providers, and numbers of people (those attending the Day Services, and the staff) likely to be impacted.
Illustrative quote from a respondent
“What other providers are out there? How close are they?”
A very few further comments concerned the consultation and decision process – e.g. whether the decision has already been made, whether decision makers or Councillors have visited the Day Services. There were also low-level mentions that the consultation information was insufficient, or unsuitably presented.
Summary
The five key themes emerging from the in-person engagement events held at Chesil Lodge and Newman Court add emphasis to the views expressed via the online consultation, in particular by those people attending the Older Adults’ Day Services and their carers / families.
Generally they placed more emphasis on their own personal circumstances, but feedback was clear about the positive experience of people accessing the Day Services the service, the benefits of the services to them, and what the impact would be on people attending the Day Services, and their carers / families, should the Day Services cease running.
All comments made during the engagement events at Chesil Lodge or Newman Court have been shared with the relevant service team to allow them to be considered during the next stage of the consultation process.