Honestly, if you have any other options open to you do NOT go for a Disabled Facilities Grant

[jimjamshaslefttheyurt]

It's one of these things that looks simple and sensible and straightforward on paper. And it's NOT means tested for families of disabled children (up to 19). But, oh my god. A year and a half after starting the process I can say it has been the most stressful thing I have had to try and deal with since diagnosis.

To top it all off today I had the owner of a double glazing firm phone up and be really aggressive towards me. The council had phoned and told him he had the job, in fact it's up to us who we use (the contract is between us and the contractor, NOT the council and the contractor). And after the way he spoke to me today he won't be getting the work.

I'm hoping for a lottery win tomorrow so I can forget the whole thing and sort it out ourselves.

And it's been this stressful with a very good and understanding OT on board and a helpful big boss on side. I dread to think what it would be like without that.

OMG, jj! STILL ongoing problems with those windows. You poor soul!

If I win lotto tomorrow I'll buy you the fucking windows.

That's so shocking.

Thanks expat. If I win I'll buy you something equivalent!

We have a lock on ds2 and ds3's door now, but ds1 can open it and sneaks off to find the key. So it's a jailor bunch around the neck all the time at the moment.

we got a grant but it nearly killed us

the kicker was that me and dh have both worked as professional fundraisers and we still couldn't make head or tail of the process

It's for double glazing riven, so no need for an architect. The OT has been helpful. But even she got caught out as they changed the application process half way through and forgot to tell her .

During the year and a half of shuffling paperwork ds1 has broken 3 windows with his head - and is climbing up on them at every opportunity (very dangerous). DS2 and ds3's bedroom has had half a pain missing and another cracked (boarded up) for about 6 months now.

I wish we'd just gone further into debt and paid for the bloody things ourselves a year and a half ago, rather than having a second summer of climbing etc

I am relieved to hear that others have had the same sort of experience. Not relieved for you (and surely these things are meant to be there to help, not to cause sleepless nights), but relieved it's not something I've done!

pain? see it's sending me mad. pane.

This sounds like a nightmare and I can imagine only too easily what it must be like keeping tabs on your ds1, making sure the doors remain locked and trying to find time for your other dss and yourself. I haven't had any experience of the DFG so not sure what it entails...are there any other funding options that you could explore? Cerebra?

It's terrible that you've had to wait so long riven.

Legally there is a time limit on how quickly works should take place.

Some action happened in my case once I put in a stage 1 complaint (I did it online via my council's website) which I how I've ended up with the big boss on board.

I know that Gabriel, from 'Growing up severely autistic they call me Gabriel' needed a grant in order to build something to stop him climbing up onto their roof. It took so long that he fell through his neighbour's roof (was unharmed! landed in an armchair!) before the grant was issued.

We had ours done in under 6 months so it is possible.

There was a woman who sued the LA for breech of human rights after they failed to provide her with an accessible toilet for 8 months. It was reported in Disability Now about 5 years ago - sorry I can't remember more details than that. But when we were having our grant processed I did keep mentioning it. Don't know if that would help?

I might try that one nineyears

i must have been so lucky, only took nine months, was finished last week. Mind you its the only thing i've had easy! My OT was blardy marvellous .

Spoke to someone in my area yesterday who has been waiting 5 years!

I feel your pain! I have been waiting for nearly 2 YEARS for a wet room and finally the builder showed up the other week. He thinks he'll start in mid August, but he's got to get whoever to move the gas meter first. So feck knows, basically.

Good luck Hecate,that what we had put in, a wet room. It's great for ds.