Fraser is one of the many people living with Huntington’s disease who have benefited from our welfare grants.
Fraser had concrete flooring before. Because it got cold, he had rugs which were not ideal due to the risk of falls. Now he has now been able to have lino flooring fitted in his entire apartment.
Fraser is from Derbyshire. His dad had Huntington’s before he died in 2015. Fraser, after living with symptoms from a young age, was tested in 2018 once it started to affect his work. Chelsea, Fraser’s sister said, “When we first heard about the grants, we thought they were just for things like adaptations or equipment. It was great to hear that they could be used to help Fraser with his flooring.”
The Huntington’s Disease Association provides welfare grants to people who need them. They can help improve quality of life, reduce risk or help support the purchase of useful items. Welfare grants can be used to help reduce risk or to make day-to-day living easier, such as to replace a broken washing machine or fridge. Or like with Fraser, helping to mitigate his risk of hurting himself by changing his flooring. Fraser said:
The flooring is super. It helped. Thank you.
Fixing things such as broken electrical items or making household improvements is important for those with Huntington’s to aid them living more safely. Often these expenses are not covered through benefit schemes, or have long waiting lists.
Fraser's Personal Independence Payment (PIP) application was rejected three or four times as they did not recognise Huntington's disease. It would have been a six-month wait for funding and they did not know if he would be able to get more than one room done at a time. Without the welfare grant, Fraser would have struggled.
The welfare grant scheme is funded through the charity. This can only be made possible with the help of donations, fundraising and charitable trusts and grants. Chelsea says:
We would encourage anybody to fundraise or donate. The whole community would be better off. The money helps fund our Specialist Adviser as well which is a massive support to us.
If you would like to find out more about how you can support the charity through fundraising or corporate fundraising, please look below.