A PROTEST march in support of the under-threat Bodlondeb care home will take place in Aberystwyth on Saturday, 16 September.

The Save Bodlondeb group has confirmed that a march backing the home and calling for it to be kept open will take place at 10am and go through Aberystwyth at 10.30am.

That will be followed by a public meeting called by the group scheduled for Tuesday, 19 September at Penparcau’s Neuadd Goffa at 7pm.

Members of the campaign group’s steering group have been holding regular meetings through the summer, with the last meeting on Monday, 4 September attended by Jack Evershed, one of the co-chairs of the Mid Wales Healthcare Collaborative who addressed the steering group.

Meanwhile, campaigners have urged members of the public to fill out the council’s consultation document amid warnings that other council-run homes in Lampeter and Cardigan could come under threat in the future.

Members of the group have said they fear that the council could look to also close down Hafan Deg in Lampeter and Yr Hafod in Cardigan.

Campaign chair Mark Williams said: “Our campaign is urging as many as possible to participate in the council’s consultation. Much is at stake, not just Bodlondeb in isolation.

“We believe Bodlondeb has a key role in care provision in the north of Ceredigion and that council-run care homes are a key part in the continuum of care our increasingly elderly society requires.”

MP Ben Lake has been backing the cross-party campaign for Bodlondeb and is a member of the steering group and said it was vital that as many people as possible take part in the consultation to ensure the council listens to the views of the public.

He said: “It is crucial that people in Ceredigion participate in the consultation so that their opinions are expressed clearly to the council.”

Mr Lake added that it was vital that the council “takes the time to analyse the responses to the consultation as each response must be considered. We need a worked-out plan for the future of residential care in Aberystwyth and north Ceredigion.

“It isn’t something that can be rushed”.

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