A FORMER Tavistock man has been inspired to create a new mental health resource in Tavistock by a moving speech made in the House of Commons by West Devon MP Geoffrey Cox. Bill Papworth is offering to establish a supported living and day centre at the historic Trident House, a property he has owned since 1987, after hearing members of the community described as 'isolated, abandoned and alone'. Mr Cox, who is a trustee of Tavistock mental health charity 'Make A Difference', strongly criticised the lack of facilities in the community during a House of Commons debate and related the experiences of some of his constituents who had come to see him in his weekly surgeries. He spoke of the deep concerns of parents about the move towards community care and support in the community — because it simply did not appear to be there. The initiatives like Make A Difference and Tavistock Area Support Services (TASS) were the result of goodwill and voluntary action by people in the community who cared, he said. The listed Trident House, which was the home of Trident Press for over 150 years, is likely to become available for use this year and Mr Papworth, who lived in the town during the 1990s, said he believed Tavistock's historic houses should continue to make a contribution to the community. A meeting of mental health professionals, charities and local housing associations was held at the Ancourage Centre last Friday to discuss the proposal to create a new resource for people with mental health problems and learning disabilities at the site. Mr Papworth said the house and cottage were completely restored after he acquired them and he had envisaged that the buildings might at some time be used for the community. 'At the time, a rather urgent printer tenant presented themselves and we leased it to them but now I am looking at what I can do with it,' he said. 'When I read the speech that Geoffrey Cox had given it got me thinking about using the house — I cannot give the people the building, but this would be a chance to do something really useful and make a contribution to the community.' The property owner, who now lives in Cambridge, said Mr Cox had made the point that Devon and Cornwall were at the poor end of the scale when it came to Government funding for provision of mental health facilities. 'Compared with London and the home counties and cities in the North of England, Devon particularly gets a raw deal. Nevertheless, there are still people who manage to do some really wonderful work. 'Fortunately, in Tavistock there is such a lot of goodwill and action by charities that initiatives locally are as effective and powerful as Government initiatives.' Mr Cox said he was very pleased that Mr Papworth was moved to launch his plans and to make the generous offer of his premises in Tavistock by something he had said in the House of Commons. 'Anything that can be done to provide better resources for those with mental health problems and learning disabilities in West Devon is much to be desired,' he said. During his speech the MP raised the inadequacy of the crisis intervention service, which only operated between 9am and 5pm at weekends, to the then health minister Rosie Winterton. He said: 'I have to say to the minister, with great respect, that as I listened to her I was struck by the enormous gulf between the tone and tenor of her remarks and the urgency of the problems that I experience in the surgeries that I conduct every week in my constituency,' he said. He highlighted the families of autistic children, for whom every day 'was a battle to secure the education, speech therapy and occupational therapy that their child needed'.