A LITTLE boy with Down’s syndrome and complex sensory needs is having to sleep on a mattress in an empty room after waiting months for a specialist bed.

Heather Carr, from Sunnybrow, County Durham, first alerted occupational therapists that her son, Blake Lee, was having problems with his bed last summer. The five-year-old, who is visually impaired and unable to walk unassisted, had started pulling himself up the walls of the cot and had fallen out head first.

Miss Carr, 33, raised her concerns with an occupational therapist from County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust. She claims at a multi-disciplinary meeting involving Durham County Council social workers it was unanimously agreed that Blake needed a specialist cot bed with high sides.

However, more than six months has passed and the bed, understood to cost about £5,000, is yet to be ordered. And last week, after Blake almost fell out again, his cot was taken away and he was left with a mattress. The family was advised to turn off the radiator and remove toys and furniture from his bedroom to prevent him from hurting himself.

With Miss Carr still feeding her twin babies at night, her partner, Simon Lee, has been watching over Blake and then going to work having had no sleep.

The mother-of-four said: “Blake can’t be left alone. He would roll off the mattress and could bang his head off the wall or the radiator.

“What upsets me is that if a social worker went into my two-year-old’s room and found it completely bare with the heating off they would be concerned. Why is that okay for Blake?

“Every piece of equipment Blake has needed we’ve had to fight for.”

A spokesperson for County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust said: “The children’s occupational therapy service is working closely with Ms Carr and her family to appropriately and safely meet the care needs of Blake. A short term action to reduce the risks of falling and to create a safe environment for sleeping has been put in place while the request for a new bed is being processed. We are sorry if Ms Carr is unhappy with any elements of her son’s care and the service would welcome the opportunity to discuss anything in more detail with Ms Carr or Ms Carr can contact a member of the Trust’s patient experience team to discuss further.”

Carole Payne, Durham County Council’s head of children’s services, said: “We are very sorry to hear of the difficulties experienced by Blake’s family and we can confirm we have received a complaint which we are looking into.”

She said the council was working closely with the Trust, adding: “We have been assured that a bed which meets Blake’s needs as closely as possible will be delivered within a week.”