Since being paralysed in a car crash, Mark Noel can only move his head and has to operate his wheelchair with his chin. And yet, in modern Britain, he is not a priority for a bathroom shower . . .
EIGHTEEN months after surviving a devastating car crash, a paralysed North-East man is battling officialdom for a simple shower.
Even though he has lost the use of his limbs, Mark Noel was not assessed as a high priority by an occupational therapist and may have to wait many months for a shower to be installed in his councilowned bungalow in St Helen Auckland, County Durham.
He moved in last November after using his savings to pay for improvements, and relies on 24-hour care.
Without a shower, he has to be bathed by his carers and keeps his head shaved because he cannot wash his hair.
Mr Noel, 40, has had to overcome many setbacks since the crash on the A68, in Northumberland, in December 2007, that changed his life.
Hurled from his car by the force of the impact, he broke his neck in four places and doctors at Newcastle’s General Hospital initially warned his mother, Carol, he was unlikely to survive the night.
His fighting spirit got the former roofer through many months of treatment and rehabilitation.
Last November, he was well enough to move into his own home.
Only able to move his head, he controls his wheelchair with his chin and uses electronic equipment bought by his family to operate his computer, television and music centre.
He said: “All I want is to live as independently as possible, but I can’t even wash my hair.
“I don’t go out of the house.
This is all I have.”
Angered by the assessment, Mr Noel’s mother has asked his MP, Helen Goodman, to press Durham County Council for action.
Mrs Noel said: “It is upsetting for Mark. Having a shower would make him feel so much better. It is the least they can do for him. We can’t understand why it is taking so long.
“He spent all his savings getting his house ready so he could come home and all that was done for him was widening some doors. We were told there would be no problem, but that was weeks ago and nothing has happened.”
A spokesman for the council said: “In an ideal world, we would clearly like to be able to help everyone in need of additional support to enable them to live independently.
“Unfortunately, the reality is that this is simply not possible.
The Disabled Facilities Grants are both means-tested and prioritised to ensure that our limited resources are targeted to those with the greatest needs. In this case, the gentleman has been assessed by our occupational therapists and he is seventh on the waiting list.”
Theo Blackmore, of the UK Disabled People’s Council, said Mr Noel’s case was not unusual.
He said: “It is typical of what happens. They grade people according to a scale and it is a matter of someone’s judgement.
“Hard as it is to imagine, there will be people in greater need and there is only so much money to go round.
“It is all about where local authorities’ priorities lie, how much they spend and how they spend it.”
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