PLENTY of people in Britain have spent the last few years with the threat of redundancy hanging over them.

But the situation has been particularly cruel for employees at Remploy, the factory operation which provides work for people with disabilities.

The Poole factory has been repeatedly threatened with closure, but through a combination of its own good work and some vocal campaigning, it has always escaped the axe – until now.

Now we learn that plans to keep the factory open as a social enterprise “hub” have not found favour with the board of Remploy , and that the factory will after all join the list of closures.

If this announcement really is final, it is a devastating blow for the 16 remaining staff at Alder Hills.

Some will say it’s better for people with disabilities to be employed in the mainstream working world than in sheltered factories. That may be true.

But with 2.5 million people on the dole, who can be sure that will happen?