Charity transforms garden of Swindon boy into ‘safe, accessible and sensory’ space
Oscar has had Cerebral Palsy since his birth
The family of an eight-year-old Swindon boy with complex needs has been chosen by a charity as one of only 30 in the country who will get their garden transformed into a more accessible space this year.
Oscar is a full-time wheelchair user due to his Cerebral Palsy, which affects a person’s movement and posture, and also lives with epilepsy and a visual impairment.
While the project, called Oscar’s Garden, is organised by national charity WellChild, the funding and workforce are provided by Swindon-based company Openwork.
Kieran Cullen, manager of the Helping Hands programme, told Greatest Hits Radio: “Well Child tries to make sure that children get outside and thrive and do all the things that you and I that are able-bodied take for granted.
“The Helping Hands programme goes out into the homes of children with complex medical needs and makes the spaces safe, accessible and sensory.”
Oscar is non-verbal but greatly enjoys being outside and playing with water and sand.
However, the family’s garden was on a slope which was impossible for him to access in his wheelchair.
Over the course of two days (20 – 21 May) WellChild and volunteers from Openwork levelled out the lower end of the slope and put in artificial grass and rubber mats.
The even ground makes it possible for Oscar’s parents to push his wheelchair in the garden – something they had never been able to do before.
“When we bought this house, we looked at it and the rear garden was lovely and flat. We signed the contract and came back a month later to move in and we found out there was a massive steep slope in the rear garden”, explained Scott Lester, Oscar’s dad.
The housebuilder has refused to change the garden back to its original state, leaving Oscar unable to access the space for over two years.
It was thanks to Robert Buckland, their MP at the time, that the family started looking into garden transformation charities.
WellChild is currently able to support 30 children a year, so it is difficult to stand out among the hundreds of applications.
“We’re very lucky and very grateful”, Scott added.
The middle part of the garden is still on a slope and is covered in natural grass as this space will be for Oscar’s twin sister.
“They get along really well. They cuddle each other a lot. So, she will come down and cuddle him and give him his toys when he’s upset.
“She’s really come out of her shell these last two years and started doing that. So, they get on really well.”
When Oscar finally got the see the result of the redevelopment works, he let out a squeal his mum Helen said sounded “excited”.
It was a special moment for both the family as well as the volunteers to see her push his wheelchair onto the artificial grass for the very first time.
Oscar now has a safe and accessible frammock swing next to his sister’s regular swing and they both share a big trampoline that can be removed, so Oscar can play on the rubber mats.
The new garden is complete with fairy lights at the back wall, lights along the newly-built fence which separates Oscar’s and Lily’s parts of the garden as well as a newly-planted tree which Oscar’s dad explained “was a Valentine’s Day gift to Helen”.
The money as well as the workforce for the transformation come from Swindon-based company Openwork.
They have previously worked together with WellChild on other projects but decided they “wanted to do something a little more hands-on” this time.
For Oscar’s Garden, Openwork’s senior leadership team ditched their desks for wheelbarrows.
“It’s part team building for them, but we wanted to give something back to the community as well”, explained Lisa Willingham, manager of the Openwork Foundation.
If the weather holds up on the weekend, Oscar’s parents are planning to host a ‘grand opening’ barbeque with other members of the family who live in the area.