Charity appeal to help 'frustrated' Peterborough mum buy a specialist buggy for her daughter

A children's disability charity has launched an appeal to help fund a specialist buggy for a five-year-old, as her mother admitted she was "frustrated" with having to "fight for the simple things".

Delilah Allpress, 5, from Peterborough, has a rare genetic neurological disorder called Rett’s syndrome, which leads to severe impairments, affecting a person's ability to speak, walk, eat, and even breathe easily.

She is fed through a tube and cannot stand up for longer than a few minutes before collapsing, but her parents Alexandra and Nathan Allpress say her current wheelchair is too small and keeps falling apart.

A new mobility chair would cost around £5,000 - and the NHS has advised her to seek help from a charity.

"It is very frustrating," said Mrs Allpress.

"I do understand what’s going on with [pressure on] the NHS at the minute, so I do try and bear that in mind. But it does get to a point where the only person suffering is your child.

"They’re not the ones that have to put their child in a wheelchair that’s too small, that’s falling apart, that doesn’t meet their needs and is a risk.”

The charity Newlife estimates it costs three times more to raise a child with disabilities than it does a non-disabled child.

With costs increasing, the charity has seen applications to its services double.

“Like lots of charities, we’re also finding it really challenging to meet that increasing demand," said Joanna Duggan from the charity.

"These really specialist items are life-changing for children. What is really important is they get those assessments and those items as soon as possible to stop their health declining.”

Mrs Allpress said the support from Newlife had been crucial due to long NHS waiting lists for assessments and equipment.

“Not everything should be such a fight," she said.

"You are already dealing with so much more than the average parent. It shouldn’t then be that you’re fighting with services to get your child the simple things they need.”

A spokesperson for NHS Cambridgeshire and Peterborough said: "We understand how distressing it can be for children and their families to have to wait for specialist equipment, including wheelchairs and buggies.

"We're working closely with our equipment provider to reduce waiting times, so that children with complex needs can get the right equipment more quickly".

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