Meals on wheels costs to rise in Lancashire

12:17pm Wednesday 14th May 2008

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ELDERLY people have started to snub their meals on wheel service since charges were increased, County Hall officials have admitted.

Controversially Lancashire County Council decided last year that it wanted to ensure it recouped the costs of providing meals to senior citizens and the housebound.

Last November the authority admitted that over the last two years the number of meals being prepared had dropped by around 50 per cent, since price hikes were suggested, and this trend appears to have continued.

Now more price increases are set to be agreed by Coun Chris Cheetham, the cabinet member for adult and community services, which will come into effect on July 7.

The price of a hot home delivered meal will rise from £3 to £3.15, while the price of a frozen delivered meal will climb from £2.40 to £2.50.

The rise for snack-type meals is £1.50 to £1.55 and the cost of main meals in day care centres will increase from £2.40 to £2.50, it is proposed.

The prices rose by around three per cent last summer, due to rising prices incurred by contractors.

Back in 2006 the county council provoked anger when it proposed axing the hot meals service in its entirety - and replacing it with frozen meals.

Though the plan would have saved the council £1.25million each year it was scaled back following an outcry by campaigners for the elderly.

Richard Jones, executive director for adult and community servies, says in a report to Coun Cheetham: "Contract prices for home-delivered meals are banded, which means that a lower unit price is paid if the number of meals delivered increases and vice versa.

"The number of meals being delivered has fallen recently, leading to an increase in the unit price paid for each meal, with the cost from April 2008 being £3.40.

"Consequently the charge levied no longer covers the cost of the service.

"The policy intention is to move towards the full recovery of the cost of the service over a period of time.

"Therefore it is proposed to increase the charge for a hot home-delivered meal by 15p, which is slightly above the increase in the cost of a meal."

The meals on wheels cutbacks will save County Hall £270,000 per year it is estimated, though initially it has cost £151,000 in redundancy payments and placed an extra £73,000 annual strain on the pensions budget.