A disabled man says he's been left 'trapped' in his social housing flat for three years with no access to the toilet or kitchen. Despite being number one on the list for a move, John* has not been able to find suitable accommodation in Bristol after three years.
And because he's on the housing waiting list he can't get any adaptations in his current one-bedroom flat, which is not suitable for a wheelchair user. Within days of moving into a ground-floor flat managed by Places for People, John became aware that the property was riddled with problems. The 50-year-old, who was diagnosed with ankylosing spondylitis - a long-term condition in which the spine and other areas of the body become inflamed - in 1998, was using a trolley to walk when he moved into the property in February 2018.
His condition has since deteriorated and he is now using a wheelchair and lost use of his right hand. He believes that the anxiety and depression he has suffered from being trapped in a flat in which he cannot exit unaided or use the kitchen and bathroom has exacerbated his pre-existing condition. Due to the lack of ventilation, John suffered from heat exhaustion during the heatwaves 2021 and 2022.
