Bob Harvey and Darcie - Easter Update Sunday 16th April 2016 Bob and Darcie said their final goodbyes to their 41 friends and the staff at Burnfoot Hall yesterday and moved to the bungalow in Longtown, Cumbria. It was a busy and tiring day but there was lots of support on-hand and the move went well. Bob is relieved and Darcie is busy marking his territory without facing constant scowls of disgust. A member of Team Bob is kindly giving up their time to stay with Bob for the first few days to help him settle in and to see how he copes and what his immediate needs are likely to be. Social workers at the Renal Unit at Carlisle Infirmary where Bob will continue to attend for his dialysis 3 days each week have arranged regular support visits for the first 4 weeks to help Bob come to terms with independent living. On Tuesday 18th April the Charity CERT UK of Penrith will deliver additional donated furniture to the bungalow and have arranged for the BBC and ITV to film the event. It may well be the case that the Directors of Mead Medical Holdings/Services Ltd and all of the spineless elected politicians who failed to step in and assist Bob through his crisis woke this morning and heaved a sigh of relief that the fight is finally over. But rest assurred, the battle is only just beginning. Bob Harvey represents each and every one of the vulnerable elderly pensioners across the private care sector and Darcie proudly stands as tall as a miniature Schnauzer possibly can to represent the estimated 140,000 pets separated from their owners each year when the time comes to rely on the residential care sector (with around 35% of those pets - approx 1,000 every week, having to be put down). Bob was born in Edinburgh and spent his 55 years of married life close to the Scottish border. Yesterday he moved slightly further south and, although just a few hundred yards from the border, now lives in Cumbria. So this brings in the politicians at Westminster. The issues brought to light by this case will not go away. I estimate that around 900,000 pensioners pay c£23 billion per year to the private residential care sector, whilst public care services are 'in crisis'. When evidence of corporate greed is exposed which puts our vulnerable citizens at risk, those entrusted with protecting the public shut their eyes and wait for the dust to settle. But no more. It is reported that Mead Medical Services plan to sell their interest in Burnfoot Hall. It may well be the case that they decided this last summer and that their disgusting bullying of Bob, using fabrications about his dog as a means of driving him out to make way for a full care resident paying £1,200 each month more, was their plan all along. Certainly, Bob is the third Tenant to leave the Home in as many weeks and this raises real concerns for the 9 other tenants believed to still be living at Burnfoot Hall and Coach House. The 3 Directors of Mead Medical are all thought to be at or beyond retirement age, which makes their treatment of their fellow human beings all the more appalling. So they may be planning to sell all of their assets and retire off into the sunset. The Care Inspectorate finally assisted in taking action at Kingsmead Care Home in Aberdeen a few weeks ago. Once the health and weight of the residents reached crisis point, the local authority and other agencies stepped in and took over from Mead Medical, installing new management and care/nursing staff. But the Care Inspectorate, along with the CQC in England and Wales only have the power to inspect, find fault and 'make recommendations'. Care Providers are then free to act upon, or ignore those recommendations. This puts one million of our most vulnerable population at extreme risk and this ridiculous situation MUST end now. Next Thursday I will be meeting with Jeremy Holtom and we will then sound the battle cry. The petition for Bob and Darcie will remain up. With the support of yet more celebrities and with the World's press and media now closely watching events, petition signatures will soon pass through the 300,000 mark and will continue towards 500,000 and then 1 million or more. The difficulties which Bob has been exposed to for the past 4 months will not be forgotten. Neither will the total failings of those whose duty it was to intervene. As for Mead Medical Services. Their reputation is now in shreds. They may continue with their plans to force tenants out of their care homes to make way for full-fee paying residents. If Burnfoot Hall is typical, up to 72 tenants across their remaining care homes may be at risk. Obviously, the additional book income of £4.5 million per annum would make their network of care homes a much more attractive proposition to potential buyers. Their problem may be in finding anyone willing to place their loved one's in the hands of Mead Medical as residents and they may end up with 6 Homes with lots of empty rooms! Either way, private care sector investors may well be reluctant to pay top price for a string of Homes with such negative publicity surrounding them. If anyone following this story is aware of issues which relate to this case, please do not hesitate to forward details in confidence to acsadvice@yahoo.co.uk I fear that Bob is not alone in suffering in this way at the hands of unscrupulous individuals who have been given free reign to abuse our most vulnerable group, but I pledge that Bob will never be alone. Within the private care sector there are many genuine, decent people who silently do an amazing job looking after our elderly. No right thinking person would begrudge them making a profit doing so. Their efforts are to be applauded and their support throughout this campaign is fully recognised. They and the rest of us, but most importantly those with the power to do so, must expose and deal with Companies like Mead Medical Services Ltd, of whom there are far too many, to protect those without a voice. A public inquiry into the issues raised by the case of Bob and Darcie is a must. As is a publicly funded judicial review into private residential care services as a whole. Michael Best and co, along with ALL elected politicians in whom we place our trust and the well-being of our silent minority - enjoy your Easter. On Tuesday the tv cameras will film Bob and Darcie in their new home. It is almost inevitable that the powers-that-be will continue to cover their ears with their eyes closed in the hope that the heat will die down. But many politicians already know how I operate and Jeremy has his own reputation going back to the fuel price and Metric Martyrs campaigns. The final outcome is inevitable so I invite you to begin taking action now before election campaigning takes over. A big thank you to the many people who have supported Bob and Darcie and the tens of thousands who continue to do so. Bob Harvey is so grateful and is amazed that his plight is so important to so many. Please continue to promote the petition page until those who can do so, find the inner strength to do the right thing. Regards Arthur Shuter Member of Team Bob