A DISABLED 13-year-old girl is having to live in a “cupboard” and be driven to her grandmother’s house for showers.

Tamzin Jones, of Eastways, Canvey, is severely disabled with a condition similar to cerebral palsy, although it has not been officially diagnosed.

She cannot walk, talk or eat and needs 24-hour care.

However, her mum, Leanne Garner, 34, said their current private rented house is not suitable for her.

She said: “I can’t lift her upstairs as she is too heavy.

“The only room where she could sleep is a room off the living room.

“However, it has no windows and no heating and is basically a cupboard.

“There is no temperature control in there so if it gets really hot there is nothing I can do.

“It is also quite small so with her hospital bed, hoist and dressing tables there isn’t much room for me to get around.”

The property also only has an upstairs bath, meaning that Leanne now has to take Tamzin to her mother-in-law’s for showers.

She said: “It takes two or three of us to get her out the front door.

“We then have to drive to my mother-in-law’s as she lives in sheltered accommodation so she has wet room we can use.

“I try to take her every day, but I have two other children and it isn’t fair on them.”

Leanne, who cares for her daughter full time, but whose partner works, said she has been bidding for council properties for two years, but keeps being turned down for them.

She has been unable to find anywhere suitable that can be privately rented and cannot make alterations to the family’s current property.

She said: “It would make such a difference if we can move somewhere more suitable.

“It would give her a better quality of life and be fairer on our other children.

“We have been trying since 2015 but houses are given to other families.

“There was one which was perfect with a downstairs bedroom and wet room, but it was given to another family.”

No-one from Castle Point Council responded before the paper went to print.