Swapping from a Maclaren Major to a wheelchair

[Friolero]

My 5yo DS currently has a Maclaren Major buggy, but we're struggling with it a bit. He has a tendency to throw himself backwards and has tipped it before, the wheels are so small that I find it hard to push (I walk with him a lot, the pavements round here are pretty uneven and we like to go for walks in the countryside too), and he'll be 6 this year and he gets treated like a baby/toddler in the buggy which he's starting to realise, so I think a wheelchair may be more age appropriate.

Does anyone have any experience of swapping from a buggy to a wheelchair, and if so do you think it would be better for us in terms of the tipping or ease of pushing? We've been able to re-refer to wheelchair services so are waiting for an appointment but I'm not sure how much say we have in whether they'll provide a wheelchair seeing as he's had the buggy for less than 2 years.

Does anyone have any advice? I wouldn't want to swap to a wheelchair just to find there's no difference in terms of pushing / tipping. Thanks!

[Ilovefffffffridays]

My dd is a wheelchair user. Her wheelchair has a 5th back wheel which is there to prevent it from tipping back and provide more stability. We haven't had a problem with tipping.
I think wheelchair services can be a bit of a postcode lottery but certainly worth a referral and seeing what options are available. At ours you get a basic action junior 3 chair - .
I find the wheelchair very easy to push around. And the most positive thing is that people see my daughter differently - she is treated like a little girl who uses a wheelchair not a child too big for her buggy.

[youarenotkiddingme]

Yes the big advantage of wheelchairs is they have an anti tipper option. From personal experience make sure you get 2 - one on each side for a backwards thrower!

[NoHaudinMaWheest]

Yes I would see what wheelchair services say. It is pretty difficult to tip a wheelchair backwards and they are easier to push.
You will still get reactions but not the 'you're too big for a buggy' one.

[Friolero]

Thank you all - hopefully wheelchair services will allow us to swap as it does sound like a wheelchair will be more suitable. Just got to wait for the appointment now!

[Sleepyblueocean]

We have a wheelchair ( from wheelchair services) and an sn buggy we bought ourselves. We live rurally and we found the wheelchair they provided wasn't suitable. We were told they only had to provide a wheelchair for getting around town (where we never take him).

[Friolero]

Thanks Sleepy - which SN buggy do you have? Is it more suitable for country walks than the wheelchair?

[Sleepyblueocean]

It's an advance mobility independence. Its all terrain and looks and folds like a very big baby jogger pushchair. It's very good for country walks but not so good indoors because of it's size. The wheelchair we were given would be useless for country walks although am sure there are ones available to buy that would work.

[Friolero]

Thanks again, will look into that one.