A plan to refuse funding for a mobility charity could leave hundreds of disabled people stranded in their homes.

Users and staff at Shopmobility are angry Worthing Borough Council has refused to allocate the charity any money from its 2006/07 budget.

Senior co-ordinator Belinda Milner said: "Shopmobility is a lifeline for so many people. If they couldn't use our scooters and wheelchairs they wouldn't go anywhere. They would be stuck at home and just vegetate."

More than 700 people use the charity's scooters and manual and electric wheelchairs to get around the town centre each year - the equivalent to 15 a day.

Ms Milner said that the charity, which has run for ten years at an annual cost of about £50,000, could be forced to close by October if funding is not secured soon.

She hoped to secure £10,000 from the borough council and said that without its support it was more difficult to attract funding from other sources.

Shopmobility users, staff and volunteers were planning a protest outside Worthing Town Hall today.

Ms Milner said the charity was previously denied funding from the council because it did not have a treasurer or business plan. Now it has both but was still refused.

She said: "It's sad the council can't recognise the disabled community is getting bigger so the need is going to be bigger. They keep saying they can't afford to support everyone but they can afford a 6.5 per cent increase in their allowances when inflation is only around three per cent.

"I'm determined this place isn't going to close and I'll do everything in my power to keep it open.

"Without these services, these people are trapped in their own homes."

Council leader Keith Mercer said the increase in councillors' allowances was determined by an independent panel which considered benchmark allowances at similar councils.

He said the council had previously paid one-off grants to Shopmobility.

He said: "Shopmobility is one of 900 charities and voluntary organisations in Worthing. While we are looking to encourage and support such organisations, nevertheless we want them to be sustainable without a reliance on one-off financial requests."