A move to close down care beds in two Norfolk centres has been branded "naive and unrealistic" by critics.
Norfolk County Council has gone ahead with its plans to close down its 'reablement' centres in Benjamin Court in Cromer and Grays Fair Court in Costessey.
Officials say the decision has been made to allow greater levels of support to be offered to people in the home - with the centres used to provide step-down care to people who have been discharged from hospital.
But critics have questioned whether the same level of support can be given in the home.
Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate Steffan Aquarone said: "The closure of Benjamin Court is dreadful news for the residents of north Norfolk.
"We have a care crisis which is made worse for our most vulnerable and elderly residents by what happens between hospital and home.
"I cannot understand the logic of closing one of only a small number of convalescence units where patients can be discharged from hospital to recover.
"It is naive and unrealistic to think that home-based care can provide the same support."
The council began consulting staff on the changes in May and subsequently saw a drop in referrals to Benjamin Court.
After staffing levels at the centre reached "unsafe" levels, referrals were paused and the site closed.
It has now been confirmed that the site in Costessey will also close.
Alison Thomas, cabinet member of adult social care, said: "Our reablement service is continuing but we are moving to home-based, rather than in-patient based model.
"This means we can support about 1,500 more people this year.
"Since Covid, demand for home-based reablement has increased which is why we want to tailor our service to provide more support in this way, with the NHS focusing on in-patient support for people with higher medical needs.
"The staff at Grays Fair and Benjamin Court are highly skilled and highly valued and we are really keen to retain them and their expertise."
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