'Forcing our disabled son to move will break us'

The parents of a young man with the mental capacity of a five-year-old have said their family will be "broken" if he is forced to move to new accommodation.

Billy Round, 21 and of Worcester, currently has a residential place at National Star College in Cheltenham, funded by Worcestershire County Council.

However, the authority wants to move him into shared accommodation in Worcester - although it said that no final decision has been made.

His parents said they were planning to take their case to the Court of Protection for a hearing in the new year.

Mr Round's father Andrew, said: "He's not seen this property. He doesn't know who he's sharing with, any of that."

Elena, Mr Round's mother, said her son struggled to cope with everyday life because he needed support nearly 24 hours a day - which he would not have in his new home.

"He's the most amazing young man," she said. "Everybody who meets him falls in love with him.

"[But] he needs support to do basic tasks - shopping, going out in the community.

"Everything that a regular 21-year-old would do, Billy needs constant support and supervision.

"It seems that no matter what Billy says to people as to what he wants, the [council] is determined to go against his wishes and to send him somewhere that cannot meet his needs."

Mr Round said Billy was "completely confused, completely lost" about what has been happening.

"He was coming home a couple of weeks ago and he turned to me and he said, in the best way he can, 'No-one listens to me.'," he said.

"[This] will break us as a family."Mrs Round said her son also needed his own wet room, which will also not be available in Worcester.

"The property's just so unsuitable," she said. "Billy's wellbeing will suffer significantly."

Worcestershire County Council said it was committed to "ensuring individuals are empowered to make choices that best suit their needs".

"To the best of our knowledge, no final decision has been made at this time," a spokesperson said.

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