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Day centres and lunch groups
If you are an older person or have a disability, and if a Social Services assessment has shown you are frail or seen as being at risk, you may be eligible for day care services provided by Newcastle City Council.
If you are living in your own home, day care services can provide you with a break by allowing you to visit a day centre where you can take part in activities such as learning new skills or relearning old ones. You can meet new people, enjoy a meal and join in social activities, or you can get more specialist care.
Applying for day care services
You can apply for day care services by contacting the Adult Social Care Direct Team. Their contact details are given below.
They will arrange for an assessment of your needs, in order to find out what kind of day care will be best for you.
If you are assessed as needing transport, a taxi or minibus will collect you from your home to take you to the day centre and will take you back home when you're ready to leave.
Day centres are run by both private and voluntary organisations, or by Newcastle City Council. The cost of your day centre place will depend on the result of the financial assessment that is made by Adult Services as part of your assessment process. You may or may not have to pay towards the cost.
If you assessed by Adult Services as needing day care you may also have the option of using Direct Payments to pay for alternative day care or activities. For further information about this, see our section on Direct Payments.
Other options
If you're not eligible for day care services provided by Newcastle City Council, there are other options for you. There are a number of other lunch groups and day clubs in Newcastle. Some provide transport for people who need help getting to and from places, and others are for more active older people.
The Adult Social Care Direct Team will be able to advise you further. Their contact details are given below. Adult Services publishes a list of local approved independent sector agencies that provide day care and Care at Home services. You can see their list for 2010/11 here.
Caring Hands organises a weekly Luncheon Club which is open to anyone aged over 55 years old who lives in one of the following areas:
- Shieldfield
- Battlefield
- Byker
- Ouseburn
- Some areas of Heaton
For further information, contact Caring Hands using the details given below, or visit their website where you can also download an application form.
The Grange Centre provides day services to older people every weekday. Those people who are physically frail can be assessed by Adult Services and, if eligible, will be provided with transport to and from the centre, meals and snacks during the day and a wide variety of activities and entertainment. The centre also welcomes anyone of a pensionable age who can make their own way to the centre.
There are a wide range of activities on offer such as quizzes, crafts, cookery and bingo, as well as entertainment from choirs, guest speakers and regular trips out.
The centre also has a hairdresser, barber, library, masseur, reflexologist, regular visits from a chiropodist, dentist and optician, a bathing service and a small shop.
Contact The Grange Centre using the details given below, or visit their website for further information.
Age UK Newcastle also have Lunch and Leisure groups. To find out more, contact them using the details given below, or visit their website.
Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) lunch groups
Age UK Newcastle also organise a number of lunch groups for older people from BME communities. These are listed below:
- Milna Julna (Get together) - This group is for Asian women aged 50 years old and over, from a variety of cultures and religions. Members receive social and dietary support, and have the opportunity to talk with someone who can listen to their problems, provide help, or point them in the right direction. Members also do regular activities such as yoga, Tai Chi and bingo, and they go on outings. The club meets in Fenham and women attend from all over the city.
- Dosti (Friendship) - This group is for Asian men aged 50 years old and over, from a variety of cultures and religions. Members receive support from each other and play cards and board games. The club meets in Fenham.
- Chinese Club - This group is run in partnership with the North East Chinese Association and meets in their premises in Stowell Street in the city centre. The group has regular infomation sessions and members attend from all over the city.
- Asian Elders Forum - This group meets in Fenham, in the same building as the Ethnic Minorities Welfare Rights Service, so members can also easily speak to trained staff about any benefits queries they may have.
To find out more about any of the above groups, contact Age UK Newcastle using the details given below.
Contact Information
Adult Social Care Direct Team
Shieldfield Centre, 4-8 Clarence Walk, Shieldfield, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE2 1AL.
Telephone : 0191 278 8377 (Social Care Alerts) or 0191 278 8156 Safeguarding Advice, Telephone Helpline : 0191 232 8520 If you need urgent help out of office hours, Fax : 0191 278 8312.
Email : scd@newcastle.gov.uk
Age UK Newcastle
5th Floor, Hadrian House, Higham Place, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE1 8AF.
Telephone : 0191 2326488, Fax : 0191 2359925.
Email : enquiries@ageuknewcastle.org.uk
Caring Hands
34 Wretham Place, Shieldfield, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE2 1XU.
Telephone : 0191 261 5234, Fax : 0191 261 5251.
Email : caringhands.charity@btinternet.com
The Grange Centre
Newburn Road, Throckley, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE15 9AF.
Telephone : 0191 267 3728, Fax : 0191 229 0503.
Email : larry@thegrangecentre.co.uk
Article last updated February 15, 2012 10:39 am
