Disabled teacher's access wait

Hywel Griffith BBC Wales education correspondent

Lynwen Lloyd wants to return to work

A teacher who is partially paralysed says she has been stopped from working because of a delay in installing wheelchair access at her school.

Lynwen Lloyd from Radyr Comprehensive in Cardiff was given clearance to return to work by both her doctor and head teacher in September.

But she faces waiting until at least mid-January for the work to be done.

Cardiff Local Education Authority said the reason for the delay was the introduction of new regulations.

"It's incredibly frustrating," says Ms Lloyd, who lost the use of her legs in February after suffering a mystery illness.

"You begin to think maybe you can't do it when you do go back.

"You wonder whether or not you will be able to teach practical lessons and to do the things that you used to do before. So I just need to get back there to prove to myself and to everybody else that I can do it."

Everybody's keen to get it done, and have been trying to do so for weeks now Head teacher Steve Fowler

Radyr Comprehensive School is built on a hillside across four different levels, making wheelchair access very difficult.

For Ms Lloyd to reach her food technology classroom currently, she would have to wheel down a long slope to the back of a fire exit, which has to be opened by another person from the inside.

She then has to go through the woodwork room to reach her own class.

"I was also led to believe that the adaptations would be done by after October half term," she said.

"I just want my life back. I want my life back with me in a wheelchair, not a new life in a wheelchair. A big part of my life is teaching in Radyr Comprehensive."

Head teacher Steve Fowler said that they had been frustrated in the progress of getting the work done.

"Everybody's keen to get it done, and have been trying to do so for weeks now. There are more adaptations than we thought would be necessary."

Radyr Comprehensive is built on several levels

It seems the greatest problem is funding.

"There's huge good will, but no money, or at least no designated money," says Mr Fowler.

In a statement, the local education authority said: "We have to offer a more cohesive solution rather than just making arrangements for one particular person in one area of a school.

"Lots of work has however been done on this project.

"Cardiff Council Schools Service, as part of its commitment to equal opportunities, is working towards fulfilling the requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act on a planned basis."

It is now hoped that building work can begin at the school on 17 January 2005.

On Friday, June Davey, from Abertillery, south Wales, said her daughter faces a 40-minute round trip to go to the toilet because there are insufficient facilities at the school.

Kate Davey, 17, who has cerebral palsy, attends Radyr Comprehensive twice a week as part of a re-integration programme. Although the lack of wheelchair access was established before the visits began, parents are still concerned by the situation.

The council said it was bringing forward plans to upgrade facilities and hoped to begin work early next year.

The assembly government has said it is up to individual local authorities to decide how their money is best spent.