David Lewis Centre Marks 120 Years of Disability Care

A disability care facility, the David Lewis centre in Alderley Edge, is commemorating its 120th anniversary, having provided assistance to 300 individuals within the community. Established in 1904, the centre initially offered care for those with epilepsy and other complex requirements. Its namesake is the Liverpool entrepreneur and philanthropist, David Lewis, renowned for founding the Lewis’s department store chain. The 200-acre (80 hectare) property was acquired through his estate as part of his legacy and now serves as the location for the centre, which supports 150 residents living on-site and an additional 150 individuals attending for day care services. Chief executive John Heritage stated, “We’re supporting more people every single day through our education services, our residential services, our day opportunities.” He added, “We’re developing some really great partnerships with lots of local employers to offer work experience with a number of new funders, so the future looks really bright for the organisation.” As part of the anniversary festivities, the Duchess of Edinburgh, who has been a patron of the centre since 2007, is scheduled to officially inaugurate a new college building on the premises. Nichola Davies, whose daughter Darcey attends the centre, expressed that she was “blown away” by the facilities. She described the care Darcey received at the centre as “second to none.” Davies further remarked, “She might not communicate like we do, but she will communicate in her own way and they are so in tune with her.” Emily, an individual with autism and a rare form of epilepsy, resides in one of the independent living houses and actively participates at the centre. Her mother, Paula Graham, shared, “She works in the cafe. She works in the shop, she distributes the post, she takes great delight texting me every day, what she’s done. She really loves the place.” Emily’s father, David Graham, further commented, “This place is a stable place. It just takes all of your worries away.” He also noted, “The staff, they go above and beyond, they don’t just care for people, they give a quality of life.” Mr. Heritage indicated that the annual operational cost for David Lewis amounts to £43 million. The centre employs 1,000 staff members, and recent adjustments to employer’s National Insurance contributions are projected to increase its yearly expenses by an additional £1 million. Despite these financial considerations, the centre has committed to not only maintaining but also endeavoring to expand its services. Mr. Heritage affirmed, “We are a community at David Lewis but we are also part of the wider community and we want to do more to encourage people to come and see what we do.” He concluded, “We want to ensure that everybody has an opportunity to come and benefit from what we do.” For more content, listeners can access the best of BBC Radio Manchester on Sounds and follow BBC Manchester on Facebook, X, and Instagram. Story ideas can be submitted via email to northwest.newsonline@bbc.co.uk or by Whatsapp to 0808 100 2230. Copyright 2024 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC bears no responsibility for the content found on external sites. Information regarding our approach to external linking is available.