Disabled Facilities Grant

LM1995

We’re in the process of getting our house adapted to make it accessible for our son who has Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.

The council and our OT is trying to force a plan that wouldn’t work for our family. Our son would only have access through the back door and I am concerned about fire safety. They are trying to push the cheapest option.

Please let me know if there’s anything I can do to make them listen to me.

Santosha12

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/144442/disabled-facilities-grant

Hi @LM1995, A warm welcome to the forum to you first of all. I don't have any experience of adaptations as my bungalow was already adapted when I moved here.

The fire service came to give me advice (I have 4 small dogs and wouldn't leave without them in an emergency so my escape route is through a living room window to the secure garden at the back) which is not ideal but is my choice. Is it worth you asking your local fire service to come to assess? I suspect they'd say you do all need access via the front and back door, especially if your kitchen is at the back. They might then confirm that for you to your council and OT and support the changes that you need.

Hopefully someone else here with more appropriate/relevant experience might come along to give you advice. With very best wishes to you.

Chris75_

https://forum.scope.org.uk/discussion/144442/disabled-facilities-grant

Becker MD here, I certainly hope you get what you need for your son.

MW123

@LM1995, welcome to the community.

I am really sorry you’re being pushed towards adaptations that don’t feel safe or workable. A single back door exit would concern me too. Adaptations are meant to remove barriers, not create new risks, and a back door only route doesn’t sound safe or sustainable for your son.

Fire safety guidance on GOV.UK is clear that disabled people must have a safe, practical means of escape in an emergency, and any plan should set out how they can actually leave the building. It also warns against relying on a single exit point because that increases risk in a fire.

You can ask the council and OT to explain how their plan meets his needs, including fire safety and what would happen if the only escape route, the back door, was blocked. If it doesn’t meet those needs, you’re entitled to ask for a review or a second opinion. Safety and suitability should always come before cost.

Your son deserves an adaptation that protects him and meets his needs properly. Nothing less is acceptable.

SheffieldMan1976

My sister in law is a qualified Occupational Therapist, and has suggested stuff for us for me.