It must be that enough time had passed since I was last battling social services, that I found the confidence to think moving would be okay… After all, it’s a bungalow, it’s in the same town, just a few small alterations needed.
Unfortunately, though, I think unless you’re in an accessible council house and unemployed, social services can’t help you. The options available to councils and occupational therapists has been cut and cut through progressive losses in funding, and they’ve now got very limited options.
A ramp and shower. That’s all I need. The bungalow so far has a bath fitted, and there’s a step and porch to get through in the entrance. Rip out the bath I thought. Long term I’d want to redo the bathroom to a wet room, but having just spent all my money on the move, for now, I just need it to be functional.
It’s a very boring and long story – but in summary: I don’t qualify for the disability grant to fit a £9k wet room due to my part time employment income, and a £2k shower tray option would not be completely step free, therefore an OT won’t sign off on it for my carers to use. Riddle me that. So me being unable to wash is a better, safer option for everybody.
Apparently OTs used to have discretionary budget. No longer. They’re proposing adding the wet room cost as a charge on your house, but unless you’re near death and sure you’ll end in that home, with the charge taken from the estate you leave, it’s more debt. So I remain trapped and unwashed.
As for ramps, the council have now sent me some temporary ones, but I still need someone else to manually place them and move them around for me to use. A permanent concrete one is again, inexplicably, not an option.
So boring. So frustrating. So upsetting. There’s no judgement or flexibility; the rules are the rules, and if you don’t fit them, just be quiet and sit in your wheelchair.
Source: thinkindecimals.wordpress.com