A lollipop lady who was forced to sleep in her dining room for more than a decade due to a progressive disability has been given a new lease of life.

Amanda Townsend cannot use the stairs at her home in Siddows Avenue, Clitheroe and was forced to sleep in her dining room for 12 years.

Her property was unsuitable for a stair lift, but thanks to the installation of a through-the-floor lift, Amanda is once again able to sleep in her own bedroom and use a newly converted wet room.

Amanda’s home was adapted using a disabled facilities grant from Ribble Valley Borough Council, which enables older and vulnerable residents to live more independently in their homes.

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They include a mix of means-tested disabled facilities grants of up to £55,000 and non-means-tested discretionary grants, called Ribble Valley Adaptations, of up to £10,000 for such as accessible showers and stairlifts.

Amanda described the changes to her home as “amazing” and the impact of the adaptations on her life as “phenomenal.”

She said: “After thinking I would have to leave my family home, the council has transformed it into a home for the rest of my life.

“The ramp at the front door makes it much easier for me to get in and out of the house and the lift has enabled me to use my bedroom for the first time in 12 years.

"The lift has a chair and two grab handles to help me in and out, and the chair can be removed later on, if and when I become a wheelchair user.

“It has lights, an automatic closing door, remote control, and is the most amazing thing I have ever come across.

“And the change from a shower over a bath to a wet room has given me the freedom to shower without the need for assistance.

“My disability is progressive and admitting I need help was the hardest thing I have ever done, but I am so glad I did because I have raised my children in this house and having to leave would have been heartbreaking.”

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Amanda is well known to the people in the Woone Lane area of Clitheroe as the lollipop lady at St James’ CE Primary School.

She is currently unable to walk on the flat and is determined to work as long as possible, but as her disability progresses she is finding even stepping up kerbs difficult.

Mark Hindle, chairman of the council’s health and housing committee said: “We offer a range of grants to help people like Amanda stay in their own homes.

“And our discretionary grants have enabled us to double the number of households we are able to help, particularly those in need of adaptations, whose need is pressing, but who do not qualify for means-tested assistance.

“I would encourage anyone who needs assistance to contact our friendly housing team and we will do our best to help.”