£50,000 to give Matilda her dream home

A couple whose daughter has a rare ‘polka dot’ skin condition have spent more than £50,000 on adapting their home for her.

Matilda Callaghan, who turned six last month, suffers from a rare neurological and skin condition called Sturge-Weber Syndrome and needs laser treatment which leaves her with the dots over her face.

Matilda, who has now had 30 operations, needed life-saving surgery when she was a baby because she was born with two holes in her heart and a pouch in her throat.

She has a birthmark which covers her entire face and the right side of her body and needs the laser treatment to stop it from growing. The birthmark also affects Matilda’s brain, eyes and gums, and her various medical conditions mean she cannot walk or speak.

The ‘polka dot’ marks are bruises caused by the laser treatment she must have every two months until she is 16.

Matilda’s parents, Paul and Rebecca, have spent thousands on extending the upstairs of their home and putting in a large bedroom and sensory room as well as a wet room. They also installed a £14,000 Stiltz Trio Home Lift to accommodate Matilda’s wheelchair. The renovation project took 18 months to finish.

Builder Paul, 50, did most of the work himself and paid for the renovations with the family’s life savings with some help from Wigan Council.

He said: “Matilda has had more than 30 operations and is so brave. She is our little miracle. We wanted the best for her and to make her life easier.

“We never thought she would make it when she was first born so we have come a long way.

"The changes we have made to the house – especially the lift which has made a massive difference as she is getting heavier now – have all hopefully made Matilda’s life more comfortable.

“Anyone who has children will tell you that when you see them smile it means the world to you. Matilda cannot speak or walk so when she does smile it tells us that hopefully we are doing something right.”