Families seek local alternatives as Coronation Centre faces closure

Families of adults with learning disabilities are calling for clear local alternatives after Cheshire West and Chester Council said the Coronation Centre in Ellesmere Port would close by March 2027. Relatives say the day centre provides long-established routines, friendships and respite that will be difficult to replace.

Some users attend several days a week and have known each other for years. Relatives described anxiety about losing a familiar setting and being left unsure where support would be delivered. For carers, the service can also make it possible to work and maintain time outside round-the-clock family responsibilities.

Ellesmere Port and Bromborough MP Justin Madders said constituents had contacted him and he had raised the issue with the council. He called for suitable provision within Ellesmere Port rather than requiring people to travel to Chester and lose important community connections. Families also want friendship groups to be kept together.

The council said closure concerned the building and the way support was delivered, not withdrawal of care. Existing support would continue while each person's needs were reviewed with them and those important to them. It said users would not automatically be transferred to Chester or moved away from their local community, and there would not be one replacement service for everyone.

Vacating the centre could allow the site to be considered within wider Ellesmere Port regeneration plans, potentially including supported living for people with learning disabilities. The council said that possibility remained subject to final plans and the relevant processes. It is not a confirmed redevelopment or a single agreed destination for current users.