Case History

We first met our client when she approached us for assistance in moving out of her family home. At that time she was 22 years old and had cerebral palsy as a result of complications at birth. She had enrolled to attend university the following year and, ideally, was hoping to be living independently by then.

Over the past five years she had found mobility increasingly difficult and was becoming more reliant on a powered wheelchair for longer distance journeys. She was also finding that daily self care was becoming more demanding due to uncontrolled athetoid movements.

Our Approach

Our initial meeting with this client allowed us to work together to establish her key goals and ambitions. It became clear from this discussion that maintaining independence was a key concern. Family was also very important and therefore she was keen to remain living close to her parents and sister.

Over the next few months we worked closely together to source appropriate accommodation. This was then adapted to allow such things as powered wheelchair access, environmental controls, access to a vehicle, and facilities for carers etc. We provided assistance to the client in the process of her recruiting directly employed carers. We also established what her requirements would be at university and liaised closely with their disability support services to ensure she had full access to all necessary learning resources.

This client now lives independently in the community and is actively involved in all aspects of university life.