A THREE-year investment plan to improve services for those with learning disabilities has been announced.

Middlesbrough Borough Council's social services department has spent two years working with the health authority, carers and the disabled to produce the blueprint.

Its main aims are to increase the range of facilities available, including respite care, a telephone helpline and drop-in facilities; provide long-term care through "substitute families"; guarantee access to appropriate health care; let people buy their own care packages; increase the use of community centres by those with learning disabilities; and enable more people to live independently.

Middlesbrough's commissioner for social care, Councillor Eddie Dryden, said yesterday: "The investment plan could not have come at a better time, as the Government has set out its priorities for people with learning disabilities in a new White Paper, Valuing People.

"The White Paper is the first in 30 years to specifically address the needs of people with learning disabilities, and puts a premium on their right to independence and choice.

"The Government is also pledging £50m a year for a Learning Disability Development Fund to expand and modernise services.

"By showing we have a detailed investment strategy, we will be well-placed to get access to these resources."

It is estimated that there are 580 people in Middlesbrough with severe learning disabilities, with the number expected to rise by one per cent a year, for the next five years.