A MILLION pound cash injection will expand services delivered to people with learning disabilities in Wyre Forest.

The special one-off funding boost is being pumped into Wyre Forest Day Opportunities by Worcestershire County Council.

It will enable the social services day centre to increase the number of sites where it operates from one to six across Kidderminster and Stourport.

At present, all services are provided through The Elms centre, in Habberley Road, Kidderminster, with 180 people with learning disabilities using them.

Its drawback is it gives users of the service little opportunity for contact with other members of the public or services available to them in their own communities.

Ron Atherton, the centre's manager, welcomed the £1million capital grant allocated for new and additional premises for the service.

"It's extremely exciting," he said, "Staff and service users and carers are looking forward to a new and improved service.

"The Elms building is a rambling, old building so the intention is we will move out of it and look for other resources in the community. We're looking, overall, at having six smaller units in the community."

Worcestershire county councillor Liz Eyre, cabinet member with responsibility for social services, recently visited parents, carers and service users at The Elms to discuss how the changes would affect them.

"People with learning disabilities have as much right to lead full and independent lives, where possible, as everyone else," she said.

"Institutionalising them in one building will not help them integrate into their community and, therefore, they could be missing out on vital opportunities.

"We are looking at providing smaller units, community-based, like Stourport Community Centre. Service users will interact with the public and enjoy community facilities like everyone else."