HUNDREDS of vulnerable adults could face new costs for their care and some may lose the right to free transport.

Harrow Council is consulting on a programme of changes aimed at saving £500,000 which would expose around 400 adults deemed able to pay to charges for transport, respite and day care.

Residents who already pay for home care would see a cap of £250 a week on costs removed, exposing around 200 to higher bills, while the cost of meals on wheels for all 300 recipients would also go up as the council is axing its £170,000 subsidy.

Courses would help teach service users how to travel independently and those able to do so would no longer have access to free transport.

The council would also offer fewer free taxi journeys and fewer free bus passes under the scheme, which could be approved in September if it gets the backing of residents.

Councillor Margaret Davine said: “This is an ambitious public consultation and these proposed changes are being discussed openly and honestly with the entire community.”

Charges for care would be means tested under the scheme, so only a portion of more than 6,000 vulnerable adults in the care of the council would be eligible to pay for tranpsort, respite and day care.

But all recipients of meals on wheels, currently £4.65, would see bills rise and the council would face a potentially difficult decision one whether to share costs equally at a price of £6.47 each.

If they charge individually, standard hot meals are £5.67 while kosher hot meals are more than £10 and Asian hot meals are £7.95.

In talks before the consultation started some residents raised doubts about the charges, saying food could be bought commercially for a similar price.

The council says the staff who take food to people's houses are trained to monitor their welfare and Cllr Davine admitted it is possible some vulnerable adults will go elsewhere, losing that aspect of the service.

She said: “A lot of people were saying you can buy meals cheaper than that. You can go out to an external provider who can do it and it would come up to that money.

“The value is in the fact that somebody goes in everyday with the hot meal and puts it in the oven. Somebody sees them and they are the ears and eyes of the care services so they can see if something is wrong.”