The Mid Ulster Workers Party will be collecting signatures outside Greenvale Leisure Centre in Magherafelt tomorrow morning for a petition which is calling on the centre to reinstate their one-to-one support for children with disabilities.
The decision to launch the petition follows an article published by the County Derry Post on Tuesday about a ten year-old girl from Desertmartin who is one of the many children that will now lose valuable support during school swimming lessons as a result of the new policy changes.
Sorcha Moran, who has Down’s Syndrome loves going swimming with her classmates. However her mum, Margaret now feels that her daughter will ‘miss out on opportunities’ due to the new procedures.
The petition, which is addressed to Greenvale Leisure Centre claims: “You (Greenvale Leisure Centre) state that other leisure centres do not provide this service. This is not a justification for reducing the quality of service you previously provided.
“If demand for this service has increased, we suggest you increase the provision to meet the demand. The extra cost could be raised from reducing your profit margin or increasing charges across a range of services rather than removing a much valued one to one support from those most vulnerable and in need."
The Workers Party will be collecting signatures from 10am tomorrow morning (Saturday) outside Greenvale Leisure Centre.
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