A CARE provider says it has solved staffing issues after telling families with disabled children that they would not be offered support for the foreseeable future and were on an indefinite waiting list.

Bridgewater Community Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust told numerous families in Warrington that they were on an indefinite waiting list for their occupational therapy service and that their cases would not be reviewed for some time due to staffing difficulties.

Letters sent out by the trust described the situation as ‘not ideal’.

The occupational therapy service, which is based at the Child Development Centre on Sandy Lane in Orford, said that they would only be able to see ‘high needs patients’ until specialised posts are filled.

But the Warrington Guardian understands that Bridgewater has managed to fill these roles in the last few days.

Anne Doyle, assistant director of children’s services for Bridgewater, said: “In recent months the service has received a high number of referrals for children’s assessments and unfortunately this demand for assessments has coincided with some staff vacancies within the service.

“Bridgewater has been working hard to fill two specialised posts but due to a national shortage in occupation therapists this has proved extremely difficult.

“We would like to sincerely apologise to any families in Warrington who have been affected and for any distress which may have been caused by the letter sent to families last week.

“The trust is fully-committed to providing a high-quality occupational therapy service for local children in Warrington.”

Ian Hill, whose three-year-old son Matthew has a rare chromosome disorder which affects one in 30,000 people and means he requires constant care and supervision, is one such resident who received the letter having been on the waiting list since March.

He had described the news that no support would be offered as a ‘smack in the face’ for families with disabled children.

The Fearnhead resident said: “All we’re asking for is an assessment but we’re just banging our heads against brick walls really – it just seems to be a never-ending waiting list.

“We’re just getting nowhere and it’s hard to be constantly fighting battles for Matthew when you’re told you’re on an indefinite waiting list.

“It’s just another smack in the face really – we’ve been waiting an awful long time and this is the straw that has broken the camel’s back.

“The service is critical for us really – we’re basically working on guesswork of what Matthew’s needs are.

“He’s got very complex needs and there are other families in similar situations who are also being let down because they can’t get the help that they so desperately need.”