Scottish couple desperate for new flat after being unable to use toilet for two years

A Scottish couple have been unable to to have a shower or use a proper toilet for over 18 months.

Colin Wilson, 76, and his wife Patricia, 69, are begging North Ayrshire Council to rehouse them due to Colin's mobility issues becoming more severe. The 76-year-old suffers from arthritis in his knees and dementia.

The pair are 'trapped' in their upstairs flat with the stairs to their bathroom being "too unsafe" for carers to help Colin down. His wife said: "He has vascular dementia.

Read More: Mum who fled to Edinburgh makes it to The Piano final with emotional performance

Read More: Edinburgh driver stopped by police on City Bypass for breaking crucial rules

“He can’t write any more, he shuffles and he can’t speak properly. He is a shadow of his former self.”

The design of his the in Saltcoats, Ayrshire, means it is impossible for Colin to get to the bathroom and he has to rely on using a commode and being washed by carers, reports The Daily Record.

Patricia said: “Colin has no quality of life. I’d just love to be able to take him out in his wheelchair and for him to be able to have a shower.

“Colin has the highest number of points possible for a housing move. All we want is a downstairs property with a walk-in shower.

“Being trapped in the flat is affecting his mental health but every time I go to the council, I get the same answer, ‘There is nothing available for him’.

“Even the carers have sent photos of the stairs to the social work manager but nothing happens. I would like to try to help him but our stairs are ridiculous. If one fell, we would all go.

“I don’t know how long Colin has left. I fear he will die before he ever goes outside again.”

Local SNP councillor Jean McClung, whose party control North Ayrshire Council said: “My heart goes out to Colin and Patricia.

“I have done my very best to get them rehoused, however, I am up against an allocation system which, in my view, is not fit for purpose.

“Ever since I joined the council seven years ago, I have never been able to understand how the system works.

“I don’t understand how the points are allocated but it seems as if the system is treating people as points not individuals. There needs to be a degree of common sense.

“I am in the dark to why Colin and Patricia have not been rehoused because in the seven years I have been a councillor, I have not come across anyone whose circumstances seem to be as dire as theirs.”

Join Edinburgh Live's Whatsapp Community here and get the latest news sent straight to your messages.

A North Ayrshire Council spokeswoman said: “We generally don’t comment on individual circumstances but we do of course sympathise with Mr and Mrs Wilson’s situation and can confirm that relevant council officers are in regular contact with them to provide support.”