Hi guys, I am writing to you today on behalf of my husband John ‘Pauly’ Spooner.
As you probably know, Paul was diagnosed with ME in 2010.
He was in his final year of his teacher training, & halfway through a photography PhD.
Although he tried to continue for a year or two, he was eventually forced to abandon his professional & academic aspirations, due to his disability.
Over the years, his condition has progressed to the point that he now uses a powered wheelchair to get around outside the house.
We have been able to upgrade to a wheelchair accessible vehicle with a grant from Motability, & have other adaptations made to the house, like an access ramp, with help from social services.
But due to his ME, Paul has been forced to give up on several projects over the years, often stubbornly carrying on long after he should have stopped, but it’s difficult for someone who was once so focused on his personal & professional development to give up on things without a fight!
We now look for fulfilment in other areas, such as travel & outdoor activities.
To do this, Paul needs a better wheelchair to access the countryside. As you may know, disability aids, such as power chairs & mobility scooters are very expensive.
They cost about £10K new, which is far beyond anything we could hope to raise here, but I think I can get a decent second hand one for about £3/4K

Disability benefits are not very generous these days, and we have seen a 30% cut in ours over the last couple years. We have also had to scale the business right back after Covid closed the shop and it became harder for Paul to work like he once did.

Like a lot of people, our finances are very tight, but what is disheartening for us is that there is no prospect of our finances ever improving, so we can’t afford to save up for a specialist wheelchair, it is just impossible, which is why I am asking for help here.