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With your support, vital breaks become a lifeline for disabled people and their carers.
Andrew’s story
Andrew is 50 and was born with Spina Bifida and hydrocephalus. He had a wound in his left heel which would not heal and he had to have it amputated. He lives on his own and has carers who come in three times a day. His mother and two sisters help out whenever they can. Andrew says:
“Everybody needs a break. My carers need a break. My family need a break. I need a break.”
“I get a lot out of it, I like coming. I like going out, meeting other people, doing things.”
Neil’s story
Neil has motor conversion disorder, severe arthritis and suffers from kidney disease.
In 2023, Essex County Council, which was seeking cuts of £36m, cut the 48 hours of weekly funded social care he received down to 42, and removed his eligibility for respite care. Previously, he was allowed two funded weeks a year.
“It’s such a shame,” said Neil, who is becoming increasingly immobile and relies on carers and his elderly parents for support. “It helps so much to have that respite care. My mum and dad are both in the mid-70s now, and it’s getting hard for them. It’s not an easy process to look for after somebody with a disability.”
Neil, who said many others like him are suffering from having their respite eligibility removed, is urging councils to rethink such cuts.
“They have holidays,” he said. “Because we are disabled does it mean we’re not entitled?”
Paul’s story
Paul had a brain hemorrhage when he was 23. He was a TV Cameraman for London Weekend Television (L.W.T.) and is cared for full-time by his wife, Lisa and has 2 children.
Paul states that “Respite care is a must“. Taking a respite break allows Paul’s wife to go and see her parents, have fun and have some social interactions.
“we all need a break away from each other. It was the only way in the early years my wife could go up to Sheffield to see & care (in their latter years) for her parents. She could not go to her mum’s funeral 2022 because of local authority cutbacks”.
Currently, he is not able to get funding from the government which means he is prevented from taking a break.
