A New Eltham mum has slammed a care home after her son with severe learning disabilities was “turfed out”.

Debbie Goleby, 54, of Ermington Road, says her 33-year-old son Lee has been living in Albany House, Southwood Road, for five years and has voiced her concerns about the way the service has been run during that time – in particular the high turnover of staff she claims to have seen.

And she was surprised when her son was served 28 days’ notice to leave the home, which is closing in November, and fears she won’t find somewhere else for her son to live by September 16.

She told News Shopper: “I don’t understand why Lee’s been given notice and no one else has.

“He’s been turfed out of his care home.”

Lee has fragile x syndrome, which is similar to autism, and he has complex needs which can make him difficult to handle.

Mrs Goleby says Lee benefits from drama, Zumba and singing classes which she takes him to twice weekly – and she also goes to the home to do his washing.

She feels staffing issues have meant the centre has not been able to care for residents adequately.

News Shopper:

Mrs Goleby is concerned she won't be able to find somewhere for Lee to live.

A Care Quality Commission (CQC) report from April highlighted the impact of staff vacancies and that the staff team was relatively new.

Inspectors also noted staff did not receive adequate training to meet residents’ individual needs.

And Mrs Goleby has been so disappointed by the experience that she is now looking for an independent flat for Lee rather than a space in another shared home.

She said: “He’s got challenging behaviour, he can be quite bad and you can’t really leave him in a room on his own.

“He needs structure and routine, not different people coming in and out all the time.

“If I had a place for him to live and found the staff I would want him to leave.

“I’m hoping that publicising what has happened at Albany House will start a conversation about the quality of care in homes.

“Lee’s care costs £1,900 a week, which is partly paid by the council, and he’s not getting what they pay for.

“It is a problem at the moment because there aren’t enough people – and I do understand that it’s a hard job.

“But I honestly believe with the right support Lee will be fine – he could do really well.”

A spokesman for Precious Homes, which manages Albany House, told News Shopper the facility is closing for a major refurbishment in November and will reopen in June or July 2017.

He said: “We feel that the long term benefits to the learning disability community and their families, to the authorities that purchase services from us, and to the staff for whom we provide a rewarding career, are all best served by undertaking this refurbishment and doing it properly.

“We do not comment on individual cases, because of our duties of confidentiality towards each client.”

A Greenwich Council spokesman confirmed they were in the process of making alternative arrangements for Lee as the facility is no longer capable of delivering on their expectations or those of the CQC.

The council also confirmed they had no plans to refer residents to the home when it reopens.