A councillor has called for more information about Lewisham Council’s new disability advocacy, advice and discrimination support service, which is due to be launched December 3.

This follows revelations the borough’s disabled people will see a reduction in services, following a drop in funding for the borough’s deaf and disabled people organisation.

Lewisham Council had offered £35,000 for a third-sector organisation to take on the work, less than half of the grant it used to pay to the borough’s former deaf and disabled people organisation, the Lewisham Disability Coalition, which closed in January.

But no group has applied to take on the work, aspects of which have been delegated to general advice services.

Once it starts in December, the commission will choose where to allocate the £35,000, but details of how much funding it will get from the council have not been made clear.

Council officers are expected to go before the safer stronger communities select committee in October with more information.

But this will be nearly two years since the commission was announced, safer stronger communities committee vice chair, Cllr James Rathbone, said.

He said “We would be very interested to know in terms of what the timeline that exists for the commission, who is going to be responsible for it, what the costs are being proposed for it, how it’s gong to be funded – much more detail orientated [information].

“By October it would be two years since we first announced the disability commission. It’s in our manifesto from 2018.

“I think two years in is very much the latest that would be acceptable to not answer those questions,” he added.

But the council’s corporate strategy, which is the same as the mayor’s manifesto, was a four-year programme, Cllr Chris Best, cabinet member for adult social care said.

She said councillors could speak with cabinet members before meetings.

“When we have a corporate strategy it was never our intention to do everything in year one,” she said.

“The Lewisham disability commission will be launched on disability day which happens to be later in the year. So it’s all about timing and we have got the programme so I’m happy to give a formal response prior to that.

“We can always sort these things out in formal meetings…always think you can come to cabinet members, or indeed myself outside these meetings,” she added.

The coalition shut down in January after it came into financial trouble.

Lewisham Council have been contacted for comment.