A MUM who cares for her disabled daughter has appealed to the Government for urgent help with spiralling energy bills.
Carolynne Hunter’s daughter Freya, 12, has severe health problems, is non-verbal and blind and requires full-time oxygen and at-home nursing care.
She requires equipment that supports her to stay alive, including a machine monitoring her oxygen and heart rate, while her bedroom and bathroom act as an “intensive care micro ward at home”.
They also need to boil kettles for NHS staff who help with Freya’s care, wash extra clothes, run medicinal baths, and use an electric bed and a hoist.
Carolynne, 49, lives in Tillicoultry and was paying around £280 a month to run her home before the price cap rose.
The parent, who is now paying £400, which she's been told will rise to £700 in October, says: "Our families are going to suffer, there’s going to be a mass crisis for the NHS and social care and children will die if their families are not able to pay for it.”
She has called on the Government to foot the bill of the unaffordable hikes “because it’s going to be cheaper than what the NHS and social care crisis is going to be”.
Meanwhile, a mum-of-12 told how she fears her family will struggle to keep warm this winter due to soaring energy bills.
Zoe Sullivan, from Lossiemouth, Moray, said she has even given hope of another holiday after she saw her home's monthly costs double amid the cost-of-living crisis.
The 44-year-old is married to RAF serviceman Ben, 47, who is winding down a 27-year career, meaning the Sullivan family will soon be faced with having to get a mortgage and moving out of military quarters.
The couple have two sets of twins, Charlotte and Isabelle, 14, and Leah and Erin, aged six - and buy branded shampoo for the girls' long hair.
Eldest daughter Elisabeth, 17, has a job, but younger kids Olivia, 15, Noah, 12, Eva, ten and Toby, nine, look forward to having a Pepsi Max and a chocolate bar on a Friday and Saturday night as a treat, which Zoe does not want to see them give up.
Baby Florence, aged four months, gets own-brand nappies, and Agnes, aged five, has a milk allergy which makes her a fussy eater and is expensive to accommodate.
The couple also have Joseph, aged three, and send six girls to dance lessons, while their oldest son plays football - as well as a cat which costs around a fiver a week.
Zoe said their bills have doubled from £240 a month to £400 a month, despite not using the central heating during the summer, and they have two seven-seater cars, one of which is used by Ben to go to work, while she uses the other for shopping.
When can PIP claimants expect £150 disability payment?
Exact date Scottish Power customers find out how much bills are going up by
I tried out supermarket own-brand tomato soups - one tastes EXACTLY like Heinz
My simple shower trick helps me save £110 off my bills a YEAR - you can do it too
©News Group Newspapers Limited in England No. 679215 Registered office: 1 London Bridge Street, London, SE1 9GF. "The Sun", "Sun", "Sun Online" are registered trademarks or trade names of News Group Newspapers Limited. This service is provided on News Group Newspapers' Limited's Standard Terms and Conditions in accordance with our Privacy & Cookie Policy. To inquire about a licence to reproduce material, visit our Syndication site. View our online Press Pack. For other inquiries Contact Us. To see all content on The Sun, please use the Site Map. The Sun website is regulated by the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO)
Our journalists strive for accuracy but on occasion we make mistakes. For further details of our complaints policy and to make a complaint please click here.