Ouch: Disability Talk

‘It was petrifying’: The family left on the side of the M1

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Episode notes

Sophie Smart was travelling back from a birthday outing with her eight-year-old son Karson, who has cerebral palsy and epilepsy, when the car’s clutch failed on the M1. As members of Motability and on a priority-list they expected the RAC to be with them in under an hour - but after repeated calls and further communication with National Highways and the Police over a seven-hour period, no-one ever turned up. Sophie tells Nikki and Emma how the situation became a four-day ordeal and Graham Footer, from Disabled Motoring UK, offers advice on what disabled drivers and passengers should do if they find themselves in a similar situation. Author Lizzie Huxley-Jones visits the studio to discuss her debut novel, Vivi Conway and the Sword of Legend, and we get an update on Daisy Simpson, who has been stuck in an inaccessible flat for more than two years while she waits for an adapted home. Plus listener Rikki sent in a very special message – if you’d like to do the same, email [email protected], tweet us @BBCAccessAll or send us a WhatsApp message or voicenote to 0330 123 9480! Sound recording and design was by Ben Anderson and Phil Bull The production team were: Beth Rose, Keiligh Baker and Emma Tracey The editor was Jonathan Aspinwall