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Chris Smith woke up on 24 February, 2018, to find he couldn’t feel his legs. This day is unforgettable for Smith, as his life completely changed. With an infection in his spine, he suffered a spinal cord injury that caused paralysis in his lower body. Since then, Smith has been a full-time wheelchair user, living in a care home meant for the elderly. The care home was supposed to be a stop-gap measure until a fully wheelchair-accessible property could be found for him. However, Smith says he’s spent the last five years in a room designed for someone at the end of their life, with no idea when he’ll have a place of his own.
Smith’s care home is in Rugby, which is nearly 10 miles away from his place of origin, Coventry. The distance makes it challenging for Chris to be near his friends and family, with whom he has close ties. He states that he lives a “completely sedentary life,” and he doesn’t feel like he’s living, just existing. Smith’s elderly parents have visited him only a few times since his injury, and when he visits his friends, it ends up costing £120 to get in an accessible taxi. Smith only needs minimal care, and he claims that he could stay self-sufficient in a fully wheelchair-accessible property. Although he has only been offered one property to move to since arriving at the care home, it wasn’t wheelchair-accessible.
The District Councils Network (DCN) emphasizes that there is a shortage of accessible housing, with disabled citizens being failed by the planning system. They call on the government to reform planning rules to give housing authorities fresh powers to ensure developers build more accessible homes. The DCN states that between 8% and 10% of homes should be accessible, and the crucial need for quality and accessible lodging needs to be reviewed and addressed.
A third of families with disabled children, according to survey data from Contact, a disabilities charity, live in a home that doesn’t meet the needs of their child. Nathalie Cain’s daughter, who has a genetic disorder that impairs her sense of danger, is included in this group. In some homes, there are severe hazards such as steep stairs and poor wheelchair access. Cain’s daughter has fallen down the stairs previously due to the development of a habit of leaning forward while walking at times, and her mother fears that it will occur again. For some families, bungalows with low access would be necessary, but they have not been able to acquire one yet.
The government has committed to constructing 1.5 million homes over the next five years, but campaigners for disability rights criticize the lack of detail in terms of designs for accessible homes. The Spinal Injuries Association, Aspire, and Disability Rights UK call for the government to ensure that 10% of these new homes are entirely wheelchair accessible. While the government says councils have to think about disabled people’s needs when building new homes, home accessibility remains an unresolved problem for people like Chris, whose predicament of living in accommodation not suitable for him continues
Read the full article from The BBC here: Read More
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