A WHEELCHAIR-bound Stevenston man who needs to bath daily to treat a painful skin disorder has been housed by the council in a home with a first floor bathroom.

Stephen Gall, 22, suffers from the painful skin disorder Bullous Ichthyosiform Erythroderma or BIE which causes his skin to blister – complications of which confine him to a wheelchair.

Stephen and his wife and full time carer Corina, 19, lived with Stephen’s father in Millport until a breakdown in the relationship between Stephen and his dad caused the couple to leave in a hurry.

They had to be housed in the Short Stay Hostel in Ardrossan until the council housed them in Donaldson Avenue.

The couple are now using the ground floor lounge of the three bedroom house as their entire living space.

Stephen said: “I have been assessed by two different Occupational Therapists and one says the house is suitable if it was adapted and the other says it’s not suitable, but the housing department don’t seem to be listening.” “What I really need and what the Occupational Therapist says I need is a house on one level.” A spokesperson for North Ayrshire Council said: “The tenants were advised when they viewed the property on July 3 this year, that it was being offered to them as a permanent tenancy.

“They signed the tenancy agreement to accept the accommodation on a permanent basis.

"The property has a fully adapted wet room facility on the ground floor.

“Prior to allocation, an occupational therapist undertook an assessment of the accommodation in order to ensure that it met the needs of the tenants.

"It was determined that, with the installation of a stair lift, the house would be suitable for the couple on a permanent basis.

“A follow up visit by the occupational therapist determined that the tenants would benefit from a specialised stair lift and it was agreed that a meeting would be arranged between the tenants, Housing Services and the occupational therapist to discuss and agree.

“Unfortunately, it has taken some time to arrange this meeting as the tenants have failed to respond to both telephone messages and written correspondence.

“The meeting was eventually held on Friday, September 19 and it has been agreed that Housing Services and Occupational Health will work in tandem to ensure the most appropriate adaptations are identified and progressed as quickly as possible in to allow the tenants to live barrier free within their home.”