A FUNDRAISER to save a community service axed by the council has been launched on the Isle of Wight.

Earlier this month, the Isle of Wight Council cabinet voted unanimously to end the local area coordinator service which works within the community across the Island.

A fundraiser has now been launched by Gemma Dale, seeking to raise £2,000 to keep the organisation going.

Cabinet member for adult social care, Cllr Clare Mosdell, said the service would cost the public health budget just under half a million pounds.

Gemma said: “So many people will be affected by this change and it will also put more pressures back on mental health services.

“I am kind of punching above my weight because of the high price it realistically costs to run, however I wanted to start at a more realistic amount —if I could reach the £2,000 at a fast rate then I know it’s not going to be a major problem putting all of my effort into doing more and more to raise the funds needed.

“Even if we can’t get anywhere near the £500,000 that it does cost annually for all of the LAC’s we’d still have funds to keep one or two workers on which is more than going from lots to 0. It’s better to have something of the service still rather than nothing at all.”

Last week, Cllr Michael Lilley attempted to call the decision back in for further debate as he claimed there was not enough evidence to make an objective decision over the plans.

However, the monitoring officer for the council said he was satisfied with how the decision had been made.

You can see the fundraiser online.