Family’s fight to adapt their home for teen
From left, Alison Pettitt, Chelsea Pettitt, 14 and Barbara Duchars
The family of a disabled schoolgirl is battling to extend their home so the teenager can move freely around it.
Chelsea Pettitt, 14, has cerebal palsey and uses a wheelchair to move around the bungalow she lives in with her brother Timmy, mum Alison and her partner Barbara Duchars.
The family say Chelsea, who is waiting to undergo brain surgery, often grazes her arms and legs on the doorframes as she goes in and out of the bathroom and her bedroom.
She requires round the clock care but her mum, Alison, says she has been told by South Ribble Council they would not qualify for help until Chelsea was unable to get into her bedroom at all.
She says: “We have been fighting this since 2009. It has gone on so long that she really can’t get through the door now, someone has to walk in front of her and hold her arms in.
“They still won’t agree that we need an extension. We have been told so many silly things in all seriousness, like we should vacuum pack Chelsea’s clothes to give more room, we should keep Timmy’s clothes in the conservatory - which is already a storage ground for the children’s physiotherapy equipment, but is far too cold and damp to store clothes in, that we should let Chelsea have Timmy’s room and put him in a room which is totally unsuitable for his needs....the list goes on and for each suggestion we have spent months trying to then prove that it wouldn’t be possible.
“We are not asking for gold star adaptations, but just basic increase in floor space and improvements in accessing rooms for her.
“Our original adaptations were done when Chelsea was just five and a little dot. The extent of her needs was not known at that time.
“We never dreamt that her problems would be so bad and are heartbroken that she has lost the use of her arms and can only operate specialist switches using her head. She is having an eight hour brain surgery in London to try to improve her quality of life, but appropriate space in the home for her to be able to move from room to room in her power chair would also improve her quality of life beyond recognition.”
Councillor Cliff Hughes, South Ribble Borough Council cabinet member with responsibility for strategic planning and housing, said: “Clearly I can’t comment on the details of individual cases because of client confidentiality.
“However, generally speaking, the council works successfully in partnership with Riverside Home Improvement Agency to provide Disabled Facilities Grants for people who are eligible for adaptations such as downstairs bathrooms, level access showers and ramps.
“Each application that we receive for a grant is assessed by independent occupational therapists, who then make recommendations on whether an applicant is eligible for a grant, and the level of adaptation work that is required.”
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Comments
There are 8 comments to this article
Page 1 of 1
Lancs&proud
Monday, January 2, 2012 at 03:03 PMSouth Ribble Council should be ashamed of themselves, you can bet your bottom dollar if any one of those Councillors wanted something similar they would be using their position to hurry it through the system. This is a disgraceful act of penny pinching.
pnestar
Sunday, January 1, 2012 at 08:28 PMI'm happy for my hard earned taxes to go towards making Chelsea's home more accessible. FYI the author has mis-spelt 'palsey' it is spelt as 'palsy'.
spacekate
Sunday, January 1, 2012 at 07:41 PMSabbie, the occupational therapist makes recommendations but the council makes decisions about what will be done and they have the final say.There has to be criteria but often families expectations do not fit with what can be provided, there is a limited pot and there are many families young and old needing help. Sadly this is the world we live in, money for those who already have it and those doing real good are left to struggle.
mummybsd
Sunday, January 1, 2012 at 04:42 PMChelsea's has 2 mums both of whom have given up full time work to care for her and her brother. Prior to being adopted she had no family... think how much that would be costing tax payers if she was still in care?? We want people to adopt and yet we are reluctant to help people who adopt children with special needs. The Post has run a campaign on behalf of LCC recently to get more people to foster and adopt and yet we often want to do that as cheaply as possible. These adaptations are essential for Chelsea to do the most basic things the rest of us take for granted, be able to go to the bathroom without hurting herself and to be able to go to her bedroom, get something, turn round and come out again.
Sabbie
Sunday, January 1, 2012 at 03:36 PMIn this instance I do not think the council is to blame. Disabled facility grants are mandatory and not discretionary, so if the occupational therapist says they need an extension they get one! Check out the facts I think you will find this is correct. The responsibility lies with the health professional, in this case the occupational therapist, obviously shehe will be working to some standard assessment procedure, it is probably this criteria that is questionable.
lancs-guy
Sunday, January 1, 2012 at 10:53 AMMaybe her dad could contibute, rather than relying on tax payers????????
267
Sunday, January 1, 2012 at 09:35 AMHave to agree with the sentiment expressed by MacGyver. The council would have no problem finding the money for their next junket to some far flung land to explore ................whatever. Time was when councilors put themselves forward because they genuinely wanted to improve the town they lived in. Now, it's "what's in it for me". Claiming maximum expenses is all that matters these days.
MacGyver
Sunday, January 1, 2012 at 02:32 AMGive them there extension, you bunch of tightwads! Maybe if you cut back on Councillor Salaries and expenses, there would be more money to go round to worthwhile causes, like this one. Fed up of folk struggling, but greedy bankers and MP's milk the system, get enobled in the House Of Lords and get Knighthoods, OBE's etc.
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