Bradford mum thanks kind-hearted firm for wheelchair donation

Single mum-of-seven, Aisha Dass said her son Mohammed Tanveer Malik, known as Tanny, was distraught when his motorised wheelchair was taken from his aunt’s garden over the weekend.

Tanny in his wheelchair replacement

Tanny, who suffers from cerebral palsy, hydrocephalus and epilepsy, faced not being able to leave the house or attend school until a replacement could be found.

But after an appeal on social media, a contractor working for Horton Housing, where the family are currently staying in temporary accommodation, stepped in to help.

Richard Stevens of Triguard, which provides security to hostels and supported housing, found a suitable second-hand wheelchair on eBay, bought it, and drove to Colchester in a 12-hour round trip to get the chair back to the family urgently.

Tanny, who attends Chellow Heights Special School, was unable to safely access his usual school transport without his chair – and the family were told a replacement through wheelchair services would take weeks.

Mum Aisha, of Barkerend Road, said: “That wheelchair was his life. Without it, we faced not being able to leave the house at all.

"I still can’t get my head around why someone would steal a child’s wheelchair. When I told Tanny he was angry and upset.

“We just want to say thank you to Richard for his kindness – it really is a lifeline for us. Our family was in desperate need - I can’t thank him enough.”

Aisha and Tanny

Mr Stevens said his firm was more than happy to help out, explaining that he drove around 400 miles in total on Wednesday to be able to donate the chair Tanny needed.

Paul Gartland, chief executive officer of Horton Housing Association, said: “We were overwhelmed by the kind offers of support as a result of putting out this appeal on social media.

“It goes to show how kind and generous people are and I am delighted that we were able to quickly support this family and give Tanny back his independence through the big-heartedness of Richard Stevens, the managing director of Triguard, who are a valued partner of ours.”

Police are continuing to investigate the theft and are asking anyone with information to contact police on 101 quoting crime reference 13220236910.

A spokesperson said: “It happened sometime between 12pm on 30 April and 5pm. Officers are carrying out CCTV and house to house enquiries.”

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