Prisoners in their own homes
Elderly and disabled people have been trapped in their own homes since a lift broke down.
Some residents of the Vale View warden-aided accommodation on Grange Road, Newark, were unable to leave their flats for ten days.
Some who do not have hoists fitted in their bathrooms have been unable to bathe properly.
Meals and cups of tea have to be carried upstairs by carers.
There are eight flights of stairs to the fourth floor.
The nightmare is set to continue for up to eight weeks.
The flats are managed by Newark and Sherwood Homes on behalf of the district council.
Former Pilot Officer Garry Chapman, 45, who left the RAF because of multiple sclerosis, has strained his back getting up and down stairs by sliding on his bottom, while frail Grace O’Brien, 91, walks on her own.
Both live on the top floor.
Mr Chapman, whose wheelchair has been on the ground floor since the lift broke, said: “It leaves me so tired but it’s the only way I can get down there.”
Mrs Elizabeth Jeffrey, 92, also lives on the top floor.
Her daughter, Mrs Carol Ince, said: “She’s been a prisoner in her own home.
“The carers have to bring her meals three times a day and tea four times a day. The carers and wardens are fantastic.
“There are seven people in my mother’s predicament, one lady is blind, others can’t bathe, only wash.”
“The reason we chose Vale View was that it allowed people to live independently right into their frail years,” said Mrs Ince.
“It meant my mother didn’t have to go into a care home, which was the last thing we wanted to consider. Until the lift broke it was a 100% success.
“Mum enjoys her independence and being able to eat with her friends and attend social functions. Now my mother is trapped and I worry what it will do to her.”
Mrs Ince said a lack of information from Newark and Sherwood Homes added to the strain.
She said the company, which manages the district council’s housing stock, offered nothing until scathing emails sent by her family to senior officials at Kelham Hall, where the company is based, resulted in a high level meeting on Tuesday.
Mrs Ince said the solutions now offered were unacceptable.
She was told her mother could go into a home until the lift was fixed, but the family would have to meet the cost of around £435 a week for her respite care, despite them paying a service charge for her mother to live at Vale View.
One of the alternatives was for Mrs Jeffrey to move into a bungalow, but only if Mrs Ince and her husband moved in with her as carers. Mrs Ince said that would cause too much upheaval for them and her mother.
The district council cabinet member for health and homes, Mr Bruce Laughton, who was made aware of the situation at Vale View by the Advertiser, said: “I have told my officers to push Newark and Sherwood Homes into ensuring the vulnerable people affected by this are properly relocated and that their care packages follow.
“There is undoubtedly a lesson about the letting of multi-storey buildings to vulnerable individuals of that there is no doubt, and it is a lesson that Newark and Sherwood Homes is going to have to learn.”
Newark and Sherwood Homes said the lift, which broke down over the Bank Holiday weekend, was due to be replaced in September.
The fault was identified and Newark and Sherwood Homes was told it would take four weeks to repair.
It said: “It was decided to bring forward the full replacement of the lift, which would normally take 12 weeks but Newark and Sherwood Homes managed to source an existing lift which could be adapted and would reduce the waiting time to eight weeks, in the best interests of residents.
“Newark and Sherwood Homes is consulting with residents of Vale View and their families to find the best resolution to deal with these challenging and unforeseen circumstances and is holding one-to-one meetings on Thursday (today) with tenants and/families to discuss the options.
“This includes the possibility of transferring the most vulnerable tenants to more accessible properties within Vale View and working with organisations such as Live at Home or Crossroads to provide companionship for tenants who request it.
“Newark and Sherwood Homes has organised for an engineer to visit to manually override the broken lift three days a week to enable tenants to access the dining room and other services, but on other days meals will be delivered to individual properties by staff.”
