ISSUE NO. 1588
10 - 16 December 2015
Stop Press
COSTA BLANCA SOUTH
YOUR PAPER, YOUR VOICE, YOUR OPINION
DON’T MISS OUR COSTA BLANCA SOUTH SUCCESS SUPPLEMENT PAGES 53 - 76
Standing firm for a better quality of life DISABLED groups on the Orihuela Costa petition the mayor By Gemma Quinn EU International Disabled Day, December 3, was seen as a perfect opportunity to raise awareness of the plight of disabled people living on the Orihuela Costa. A group of residents delivered a letter addressed to the mayor at the town hall in Playa Flamenca, seeking his support for their request to use a room at the Civic Centre to hold social meetings and events for those with disabilities. The Help At Home Costa Blanca charity has set up a self-help support group for their many clients but they need somewhere to meet. They have used the café in the Civic Centre, but it is not really suitable for people in wheelchairs or on electric scooters; they need their own space, a place to socialise and relax together. They can use facilities in the city, 38 kilometres away, but argue there is no regular bus
service to Orihuela. They protested that disabled people on the coast, or those with special needs, are largely forgotten about. As the group gathered at the town hall, there was an event taking place to mark EU International Disabled Day, but no groups or associations on the coast had been aware that the event was even taking place. Whilst there are two day
care centres and an Alzheimer’s centre plus funding to support disabled groups
in Orihuela, there is nothing for them on the coast, they complained.
WWW.EUROWEEKLYNEWS.COM