Amy was born with quadriplegic cerebral palsy and is a wheelchair user. She is hearing and speech impaired, doubly incontinent and has dysphagia requiring alternative forms of feeding (PEG). She has a learning difficulty and is unable to verbally communicate. As a result of her complex needs, she requires 24 hour support, hoist transfers and the assistance of two carers for all personal care and activities of daily living.
Amy lived in a two bedroom ground floor flat with her mother, stepfather and two twin sisters. Since 2005, the flat had not been adequate enough for Amy to manage her disabilities due to the cramped living conditions.
Only one side of Amy’s bed was accessible for providing care which presented a manual handling risk and there was insufficient space in the bedroom for her to use the floor to carry out her stretching programme. She was unable to access the kitchen because the door was too narrow for her wheelchair.