Disabled OAP is kept from Falkland service

A DISABLED Falkland Islander was prevented from paying tribute to the heroes who liberated her birthplace because she was barred from parking in Church Square. Police told Leat Woodhams, 68, that she would not be allowed to park in the disabled bays as the square was closed for the 25th anniversary parade and thanksgiving service.

While Lt-Governor Sir Fabian Malbon's car would be allowed in the square, Mrs Woodhams, who was born in Port Stanley but moved to Guernsey some 30 years ago, would have to park on the pier.

'It's impossible for me to walk that kind of distance. If I could, I wouldn't need a disabled badge,' she said.

'The police officer asked me if I had a friend who could drop me off nearby, but I said unfortunately I didn't. I suggested a number of other places where I could park close by, but he said that they were out of the question.

'There will never be another opportunity like this and I missed out because no provision was made for people like me.'

Mrs Woodhams has a fused spine. Three metal rods were inserted into her back during an operation in 2003 and she now walks with the aid of crutches.

Police Sergeant Martin Harris said there was nothing he could do about the parking restrictions.

'On that particular day the area was closed to all traffic.

'The only vehicle allowed through was the Lt-Governor's car,' he said.

'Usually parking would have been available on the Quay, but it wasn't on this occasion because of the parade. All other parking areas were maintained as normal.

'There were no other suitable places for a disabled person to park due to the nature of St Peter Port's streets being very steep and narrow. It is also very unusual for somebody not to have a friend who can help them out in these situations.'

Mrs Woodhams, a retired hotelier, said that one Christmas, after parking outside the Town Church, she had found her car moved into Fountain Street even though it was in a disabled space with a permit.

She said it had not been practical to ask someone to help her to get to the Falklands ceremony as she lives a long way from St Peter Port.

'I try to be as independent as possible and I don't want to ask for someone else's help,' she said.

'Besides, this is Guernsey, not central London. Parking really shouldn't be such a problem.

'And why does the Lt-Governor get special treatment when he's only here for five years and doesn't even regularly attend the Town Church?

n In 2000, Mrs Woodhams and her husband, Brian, 82, were awarded the Specsavers' Lifetime Achievement Award for their pioneering charity work.

In 1982 they set up the multiple sclerosis and motor neurone disease charity Action For Research, which now has branches all over the UK.

In the late 80s the couple established Guernsey Neuro Concern, which lends rehabilitation equipment to people who suffer from motor neurone disease.

It was the first charity to introduce diving chambers as a therapeutic tool and is still based at the Castel Hospital today.