I am the mother of Daniel. Although Daniel appears just like everyone else and wishes everyday he was, life is a daily challenge for Daniel as he suffers with Cerebral Palsy, Hereditary Spastic Paraplegia, Autism and Cerebral Visual Impairment. Daniel wakes up tired, with tight muscles has to deal with constant sensory overload from his clothes - we all know how annoying it is when our clothes are not quite right - well for Daniel, he lives with this feeling all day every day.

⮚ Cerebral Palsy affects Daniel’s ability to move and maintain balance and posture, it causes muscle weakness, fatigue and constant pain.

⮚ Hereditary Spastic Paraplegia is progressive weakness and stiffness of the legs alongside fatigue. Together with Cerebral Palsy, this makes movement hard for Daniel, and he is reliant on crutches and a wheelchair.

⮚ Cerebral Visual Impairment causes vision problems due to the signals from the eye to the brain not working properly. Daniel cannot pick things out in busy environments and sees everything in 2D. To Daniel, stairs may look like a slope and he doesn’t recognise objects/people in cluttered/busy spaces.

⮚ Autism causes Daniel problems with social communication and interaction, He struggles to understand his peers and why they are always mean to each other. He needs order and not to rush, it gives him immense anxiety, sensory issues, and the ability to be extraordinarily special

The way I try to explain how Daniel feels and how challenging the world for him is this:

Imagine you are in the classroom and you need to get to the next class. You will have to negotiate lots of people, doorways and stairs, roughly about 100m by foot then try this…

1. Put a heavy rucksack on your back

2. Place a blindfold over your eyes

3. Turn both feet slightly inwards

4. Raise your heels so you are standing on your toes

5. Now, try walking on your toes and negotiate your way through lots of people, doors and stairs

6. Oh, and don’t forget your clothes will feel like they are covered in itching powder!

Tricky right? That’s Daniel's life. He lives life with the anxiety that comes from awaiting falling over all the time, not being able to find your way, having to do daily physiotherapy, watching your friends play sports when you know you can’t keep up, being treated like you are an idiot because you need assistance to process things, constantly waiting for the next appointment and operation. Daniel uses a wheelchair to help him get out and about, but currently does not have access to the equipment to allow him to use his wheelchair fully and live his life again.

Daniel feels most comfortable in the countryside and open spaces due to his medical conditions and is a massive fan of tractors. He loves spending time at home on the farm, and wants to be an agricultural engineer so that he can spend his days in the surroundings and with the tractors he loves. However, currently he is unable to attend the agricultural shows that he loves so much and is unable to access the farm as he does not have access to the equipment he needs to do so. He tires very quickly using his crutches and cannot use his wheelchair independently - something he despises as he desperately wants to be independent.

To get Daniel back out onto his farm again, he needs a bike attachment for his chair called a Triride alongside some special vibration reducing wheels called Loopwheels. This set-up is perfect for outdoors and rough terrain and Daniel had such a smile on his face when he tried them. It will allow him to go over grass and fields with ease, and allow him to attend agricultural college to pursue his dreams. Being outside in nature is so important for Daniel and he has missed out so much in the last 8 years, but with the Triride he will be able to join in once again.

At school Daniel spends most of his time in one room at school as he is unable to get from class to class quickly enough, has been pushed to the floor or tripped and fallen in corridors. He misses out on school trips as he cannot keep up with the class. He is 14 years old and apart from walking differently, looks just like everyone else from the outside and longs to be accepted and just like anyone else.

To enable Daniel to move around school he needs some powered wheels (called Empulse Wheeldrives) for his wheelchair so that he can move from class to class safely and most importantly to Daniel - independently. He won’t need to be “pushed like a baby” but will be able to go where he wants to be included again. These wheels will allow him to enjoy attending school again and be confident in himself, alongside allowing him to fully participate in his education once more.

These adaptations will be absolutely life changing as they will enable Daniel to be included in both his educational and social environments again. Daniel has been diagnosed with acute anxiety disorder 90% of which was deemed by his immense self-hate of not being able to do things, and being excluded and different from his peers, not to mention the cruel comments he has had to endure throughout his school life. Daniel just wants to be included and with the adaptations to his wheelchair, these will go a long way to giving him confidence to go out again and live life, a small wish, which for most of us, take for granted

As well as all of the above they will allow Daniel to live with far less fatigue and pain, meaning he can live his life to the fullest. He has the biggest heart and has endured a lot in his short life including 8 operations, one of them being having both legs broken, pinned and straightened. He always thanks me for taking him to the 100’s of appointments he has, for looking after him and being a great mum. A great mum is not how you feel when your son tells you he knows why he hasn’t got the equipment he needs but has seen others with, as he must not deserve it and people don’t like him. This is so untrue, people that really know Daniel, know he has the biggest heart, can be the biggest comedian and just wants everyone to be happy, something, which I would love him to be.

Before Daniel used a wheelchair, I thought Disabled People were given wheelchairs for free - how wrong I was. This equipment is very expensive and we are having to cover all the cost ourselves. Any amount you could spare would be gratefully received and greatly change a child’s life who really has not had it easy.