Life-changing move through Homes for Wandsworth programme

Amna has always longed for more independence.

The ability to move around her home safely and confidently, and come and go as she pleases.

The young wheelchair user now has a fresh start after moving into a brand-new accessible home built as part of the council’s Homes for Wandsworth programme.

Life-changing move

“My favourite thing about being here is that I have the independence to be able to move around on my own, I’m able to reach things myself,” explains Amna, a lifelong Wandsworth resident.

“There’s not one place in the flat I can’t get to. Being able to access the flat by myself and not worrying I’m not going to be able to get in or leave by myself, it takes a lot of weight off my shoulders.”

The fully wheelchair-accessible home is part of a new development at Kersfield Estate in East Putney.

1,000 new homes for council rent

It is among more than 1,000 new homes for council rent being developed in the borough by 2028/29 through the Homes for Wandsworth scheme.

At least ten per cent of the new homes will be fully wheelchair accessible, with designs developed with our team's Specialist Housing Occupational Therapist to provide inclusive, flexible, futureproofed and comfortable homes for residents.

For Amna – who has a condition called Osteogenesis Imperfecta, or brittle bone disease – moving to the fully accessible property “helps my anxiety”.

“I’ve lost count of how many bones I’ve broken, and I can break at any time,” she shares.  “I fell out of my wheelchair so many times in the old place so I have really bad PTSD.”

Standard features in Amna and her family’s new three-bedroom ground floor flat include a specialist automated door entry system, level access and plenty of wheelchair turning space.

The kitchen is equipped with electric height-adjustable counters, hob and sink, so 22-year-old Amna can easily help with preparing and cooking food.

All light switches and power sockets are within easy reach and there’s a wheelchair-accessible bathroom.

“When I found out I could lock the bathroom door by myself and unlock it I was so excited, I’d spend hours in there,” laughs Amna, who enjoys spending time caring for rescue birds including budgies, lovebirds, a cockatiel and an African grey parrot.

“The whole estate is really good. The pavements around the building are really smooth and not bumpy. There isn’t a place in this home I can’t get to as I have that space to turn and move around.”

The move to a fully accessible home has been backed by the Brittle Bone Society.

The charity’s chief executive Patricia Osborne says: “The Brittle Bone Society seeks a world in which the needs of people living with Osteogenesis Imperfecta are better understood, respected and fully met, overall we want to advance a better quality of life for those diagnosed with OI and their families. 

“Living in a home that is fully accessible is key to gaining that independence we all of us expect to have, to live a good life.”

Moving into the new home has made a difference to all of Amna’s family, acknowledges her mum Lubna.

“It’s a fresh start,” points out Lubna. “We had become quite isolated. The whole move was about Amna as we want her to be as independent as possible. It really has made a difference, especially to our mental health.”

'Happier'

Amna adds: “People have seen the difference in me, they’ve seen the difference in all of us, in a good way.

“I am happier, I think we’re all happier having our own privacy and being able to come out into the living room or the kitchen when we want to sit together, and have dinner together, which we weren’t able to do before.

“It’s changed our lives so much in a better way. I’m so grateful for the fact that people have put so much thought and ideas into this flat that benefit me so much.”

Find out more about the Homes for Wandsworth scheme and read the stories of other Wandsworth residents who have benefitted from the development of new homes for council rent.