Ealing: Disabled teenager bedbound for a month due to broken lift

Tracey Jones with her daughter Tierney, who is 17

A mother and her disabled daughter were left stranded in their home for month when the council delayed fixing their lift.

Tracey Jones said that she thought the way Ealing Council treated her and daughter Tierney, 17, was "disgusting".

The lift is the only way that Tierney, who needs a wheelchair and round-the-clock care, can get from the first floor of their house to the front door.

Ealing Council said it has apologised and compensated the family.

Ms Jones said her daughter had been unable to attend St Ann's school, Ealing, and had therefore not been able to access the specialist help she needs and usually receives there.

During the period when the lift was broken, Ms Jones was told that Tierney had been flagged with social services due to her absence from school. She also said that Tierney's health had suffered, due to her inability to move about and do physiotherapy.

"I had to get antibiotics from my GP because my daughter... wasn't doing physio, which she would normally do at school. She got a chest infection," Ms Jones explained.

"It was worse than lockdown. For the whole month, she was confined to her bed."

Tierney was unable to leave her flat for a month

Because Tierney has Pontocerebellar Hypoplasia type 2 she may suffer seizures, so needs constant monitoring. For this reason Ms Jones could barely leave her daughter's bedroom.

Tierney cannot be lifted without a hoist and has severe scoliosis, which makes moving her in other ways very painful. Added to this her chair is extremely heavy and can only be managed by lift.

The lift was finally repaired on 17 March, 27 days after it broke. Tracey said the council has promised to send her £250 towards heating her home - which needed to be warmer than usual - over this time.

Ms Jones said she has not yet received the money, although she has never been interested in compensation and had only wanted the lift repaired in a timely manner

"I feel totally let down," she said. "I just think that they weren't any use to me."

A spokesperson for Ealing Council said: "We recognise that this situation was completely unacceptable and [that we] fell far short of the service that we strive to offer to residents.

"This is why Ms Jones received a full apology from the council and compensation towards the extra costs incurred during the time whilst the lift was broken. We are working with our contractors to try and ensure that this does not happen again."

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