Angie Waller, South Yorkshire Socialist Party and Kirklees Unison steward, personal capacity
About 50 people lobbied a Kirklees Council full council meeting on 18 September with campaigners from Save our Homes Campaign and Stop the Closures joining forces in another attempt to defend council services under attack.
It’s just one year since campaigners won the fight to stop the closure of local specialist dementia care homes Castle Grange and Claremont House in Kirklees. However, the council has revealed that it is in active talks with private providers to transfer staff and residents out of the council.
The council cabinet will meet on 8 October to decide whether to ‘actively engage’ with as yet unspecified private providers. Unfortunately, the council has already provided payroll, pensions, financial, and client/customer information to those organisations without seeking the permission of the relatives or staff giving their consent. This has angered all those affected, some even asking why a Labour council would treat them so insensitively.
Have they learnt nothing from the failed privatisations of the last three decades? Water, rail, mail, energy are all in dire straits because profit has been put before our needs.
At the rally, many speakers questioned the motives of the council and its management.
Relatives and trade unionists from Unison, GMB and the NEU spoke about the recent fight we had to save the homes and that forced the council to do a U-turn. One relative said: “We will not allow this Labour council to do the same to our homes”.
So once again, the campaigners will be back out building a campaign against backdoor privatisation by a minority Labour-led administration.
The campaign will be represented at the cabinet meeting on 8 October, with deputations to appeal for the council not to move on outsourcing dementia care.
Unfortunately, at the council meeting, the council spokesperson confirmed that the local authority has been exploring the option of a transfer to the private sector, despite the campaigners urging councillors to think about the detriment to the service users and the legacy this would leave.
The campaigners have relaunched their Facebook campaign and WhatsApp groups, have a new petition and are planning to fight this all the way!
