A wheelchair-bound Scots mum says she has been left suicidal after being forced to ‘bum shuffle’ around just two rooms in her home due to inadequate council housing. Danielle MacArthur woke up to discover both her legs were suddenly paralysed in October 2019 before later being diagnosed with Functional Neurological Disorder.
The 27-year-old, who also has cysts on her brain and spine malformations, has now been sleeping on her living room couch next to a portable toilet for the last three years. The mum-of-one told how she feels like a “caged animal” after being left relying on her carers to carry her in and out of her Kilsyth home while being unable to get up to her young son Peter's room.
Despite repeated pleas for help to North Lanarkshire Council, Danielle said she was forced to take out disability discrimination lawsuit against the local authority and has been awarded £10,000. But two months after the case concluded, the mum claims the money has yet to be paid out while still desperately waiting for suitable accommodation to be found.
She explained: “I just don’t know where to turn anymore. My house is just not accessible at all. My doctors wrote to the council and told them that a property with stairs isn’t appropriate but they seem to have ignored them.
“I can only really get about my living room slightly and it's by shuffling on my bum, pulling myself about with my hands. This is making the issues with my spine even worse.
“I can kind of stand up with my crutches but I’ve damaged my shoulder from using them and I’ve got carpal tunnel in my wrists so it’s even harder now. I’m just trapped in this house all the time, like a caged animal.
“It’s mentally draining to the point that I don’t even see the point in living anymore. I’m just existing. I’ve got a physio now but I‘m missing a lot of my appointments because I can’t get out unless my carer lifts me out of the house.
"My carers have also had to come in and teach my son how to cook and use the oven. I just feel like the worst mum ever. I feel like I’ve totally let him down and have failed as a mum.
“His mental health is terrible as well because he’s constantly stuck in having to look after me. He’s had to change and wash me on so many occasions when I’ve had accidents.
“He’s seen me being taken away in ambulances on so many occasions in the last couple of years. I’ve completely died and had to be brought back by the paramedics because of really bad seizures caused by the FND.
“My partner had to give me CPR and my son saw all this. Peter's room is up the stairs so if anything happens to him and I’m home alone, I can’t get to him which is another hazard in itself.”
Danielle’s housing problems began in July 2018 when she was housed in a different property which was blighted by damp and mould. The mother and son were eventually moved to a bed sit but were left living in fear after being confronted by a man wielding a machete in the common close.
She claims she was told she had no other option but to move into her current property, despite her failing mobility, or she would have to stay in the temporary accommodation. Despite launching the successful and unopposed court action, Danielle claims she is still waiting for the payout.
Legal documents seen by the Daily Record show the decree from Sheriff Deutsch ordering the local authority to pay out the five-figure sum.
Danielle added: “They just kept saying that they can’t help so I took them to court for discrimination for being disabled. They accepted liability and were told to pay me £10,000.
“The court case was over on the 6th of June and the money was meant to be transferred to my lawyers by the 22nd of June but they haven’t done it. And I’m still sitting here and they’re not doing anything to help me.”
Functional neurological disorder (FND) is a medical condition in which there is a problem with the functioning of the nervous system and how the brain and body sends and/or receives signals.
Symptoms include weakness or paralysis, abnormal movement such as tremors, loss of balance, difficulty swallowing, seizures and apparent loss of consciousness.
A spokesperson for North Lanarkshire Council said: “Arrangements are being made to pay the money owed in this civil court case and we apologise to Ms MacArthur for the delay.
“We have been working with our tenant for a number of years to try and resolve her accommodation needs. This included an offer of an alternative property and adaptations being made to suit her needs.
“So far, we have been unable to agree a suitable long term solution. We are treating this as a priority and we will continue discussions with Ms MacArthur to mutually resolve this situation as soon as possible.”
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