There is anger and frustration after Somerset County Council announced plans to close a learning disability centre in Taunton.
Six Acres Resources Centre, which offers support for more than 90 vulnerable people, will close its doors in March 2019.
The news of the centre&apos;s closure has sparked a heated response from councillors and residents.
Alex Roland, an IT technician and social worker, shared on Facebook: "What a great loss for the local community. It will be sadly missed and our thoughts go to the many staff and people who use this facility."
Jules Smith posted: "Absolutely disgusting. Shame on the council for letting down these vulnerable people with no consultation and no thought for the consequences."
Sharon Perryman called the sale "disgusting" while Kimberly Dunster shared sympathy with those affected, remarking it is "a very difficult and frustrating time".
Collette &apos;Martin&apos; Day shared: "The future doesn&apos;t look bright for the most vulnerable.
"It&apos;s a worry for families who need or may need help and support now and in the future. It seems it&apos;s always the most vulnerable who have valuable resources removed."
Wendy Bews, who formerly worked at Six Acres just after it opened in 1970s, said: "So many people blossomed there and many families relied upon that support for both their loved one and for themselves.
"Such a poor judgement call from a poorly performing council. Shame on them."
The council says it aims to bring forward plans to modernise learning disability support in the county town, and its staff are completing reviews of its recipients&apos; care needs.
Working with Discovery social enterprise, which operates the centre, affected people will be found suitable, community-based and creative ways to meet their needs.
A spokesman for Discovery said its services in Taunton "is not ceasing" and will find a solution to offering care to vulnerable adults in the town.
Shadow cabinet member for adults services, Councillor Bill Revans, said the sale is a "hugely worrying move by the cash strapped Somerset County Council".
He said: "This is the latest chapter in the controversial outsourcing of services to Adults with Learning Disabilities to Discovery, a subsidiary of Dimensions UK, by Somerset County Council.
"The council appears to have been approached by a budget supermarket at a time when the council is in financial crisis.
"This has the whiff of a fire sale about it.
"Social workers have been assessing and reviewing the needs of these vulnerable adults.
"These reviews are behind schedule across the county and it has been confirmed that the reviews of the Six Acres service users have not yet been completed.
A spokesman for the care service published a statement on its website on Friday (October 26).
"We are aware that rumours have been circulating in Taunton, about the potential closure of our Day Services building at Six Acres. Firstly, we would like to confirm that our support in Taunton is not ceasing.
"However, Somerset County Council and Discovery have always planned to modernise Day Services in Somerset.
"The future use of Day Centres is clearly an important part of that modernisation and you will be aware that a review of centres is ongoing.
"In the long-term, both the Council and Discovery believe firmly that more community-based, inclusive and creative ways of providing support, provide better outcomes.
"We can confirm that Somerset County Council is selling the Six Acres site and this will change the way support is delivered in the future.
"Discovery&apos;s ambitions – delivery of person-centred support for everyone – have not changed, but this sale means we will re-adjust the previously announced plan for Taunton.
"We have previously said that we would assess the success of new hubs in St James, Colliers Court and the Seahorse Centre before deciding on the future for Six Acres.
"The sale is an opportunity to move our shared vision for the future of day support forward more immediately.
"For Somerset County Council (SCC) it also generates much-needed income at a time of big pressures on their budgets.
"The sale will also affect two residential supported living settings, Ashbury and the Brambles, as well as the operational running of our support at Bindon Road, which is intrinsically linked to our day service provision provided at Six Acres.
"Most significantly, in the short term at least, the sale will mean the loss of a base which currently serves a few purposes which aren&apos;t easily accessible within Taunton at this moment in time.
"We will work closely with SCC and other organisations to develop these as a priority."
"Yet it has already been decided that the best way to meet these needs is to close the day centre. There can have been no thought through assessment of the alternatives that are available in the area.
"Vulnerable adults have been let down."
Councillor Revans added he fears for the residents at Ashbury and The Brambles residential houses, with mixed messages on if they will be housed elsewhere.
"Some of these residents have lived there for decades and this is hugely worrying for their families. Their needs appear to have been put last."
"This decision appears to have been made secretively and in indecent haste by a council in crisis and desperate for cash.
"I have asked for an urgent meeting with officers to explain how the needs of the service users have been assessed.
"This decision appears to put the needs of the council&apos;s coffers before the most vulnerable in society."
Councillor David Huxtable, cabinet member for Adult Services at Somerset County Council, acknowledged it was a difficult decision but hopes to modernise the service.
He said: "We understand people will have an attachment to Six Acres, but have been clear all along that that our aim is to modernise what remains a largely traditional service.
"Change is always difficult, but we believe that this will mean support that is more inclusive, more flexible and offers more choice – as we are seeing develop in Minehead.
"The buildings-based service that were transferred to Discovery needed to be reviewed and modernised, and this is no reflection on the staff at Six Acres at elsewhere who work very hard for the people they care for.
"This is an opportunity to move things forward in Taunton sooner than originally planned, as well as generate income at a time of the well-documented pressures on its budgets."
Are you affected by the closure? Do you have a child or relative at Six Acres? Got a Taunton or West Somerset story? Email your thoughts and stories to michael.taylor@reachplc.com or call 01935 709742.