I am Stephen’s mother, and I am urgently calling for your support to prevent my 35-year-old son from being evicted from Old Orchard, the care home he has called home for nearly a decade. Stephen has Angelman Syndrome and cerebral palsy, and his life has been filled with unimaginable trauma. He has endured more than anyone should ever have to, and for almost 10 years, Old Orchard has been the only place where he feels safe, cared for, and truly valued as a person. Now, due to a funding dispute between Wiltshire Council and Choice Care, Stephen faces eviction. If Wiltshire Council does not provide the necessary funding, he will be ripped from the home he has known, disrupting his stability and the relationships he has built with friends and carers. This decision would have devastating consequences for Stephen’s well-being.

Unfortunately, a serious funding dispute between Wiltshire Council and Choice Care has put my son’s future in jeopardy. Due to rising care costs, the home has requested an increase in funding from Wiltshire Council to continue providing the level of care that my son needs. However, Wiltshire Council has offered a 0% uplift, which is simply not enough to cover the increased costs of providing care for individuals with complex needs like my son’s. As a result, the care home has been left with no option but to serve an eviction notice, effectively uprooting my son from a home he has known for nearly a decade.

This is not just a matter of housing; it is about the basic right to appropriate and dignified care. The emotional and physical toll that relocating my son would have on him is unimaginable. After living in this home for so many years, he has formed deep bonds with the staff and his peers. The prospect of being moved to an unfamiliar environment would cause him immense distress, anxiety, and regression in his progress.

Stephen is non-verbal so we are his voice. Stephen’s journey within the care system has been filled with abuse and neglect. His progress at Old Orchard has been hard-won. His first care placement in Aylesbury aged 16, led to severe physical abuse, resulting in him returning home having been battered around his head and face. In the space of three months he was hit, starved and then force fed because he sustained severe weight loss. The neglect continued in his first adult home in Southampton that left him in a horrendous state—isolated in his room with faeces smeared on the walls and urine pooling under his feet. This neglect was hidden for over a year. Wiltshire Council placed Stephen in these facilities and had responsibility for ensuring his continued safety. Two of the three homes were far from his nearest family members and now Wiltshire are looking to uproot him away from his family and friends again. After years of fighting for better care, we found Old Orchard, where Stephen has made incredible strides in his emotional and physical recovery. This care home has given him the safety and consistency he needs to thrive.

Now, after nearly 10 years of stability, Stephen is at risk of being evicted due to a lack of adequate funding from Wiltshire Council. The council has offered a 0% increase in funding, despite the rising costs of wages, food, and energy—costs that everyone, including Old Orchard, is struggling with. Wiltshire Council’s failure to negotiate an acceptable uplift to cover Stephen’s high level of support is unacceptable. It is clear they are treating him as just another statistic, without any regard for his humanity or the years of progress he has made in this safe, nurturing environment. This decision is not in Stephen’s best interest, instead it is a decision that is cruel, dehumanising and dangerous.

The situation is urgent. We have until May 3rd, the end of Stephen’s notice period, to prevent this catastrophic disruption to his life. The eviction should not just be about money—it should be about the well-being of a vulnerable person who relies on a stable, caring environment to manage his complex needs. Wiltshire Council's offer of a 0% increase in funding is unacceptable, especially given the rising costs across every aspect of life. Everyone, from care workers to families like ours, are feeling the financial burden. But for Wiltshire to ignore Stephen’s needs in this way shows a lack of basic compassion.

Further compounding the issue is the lack of transparency and communication. Negotiations between Wiltshire Council and Choice Care have been ongoing for several months, but Stephen and our family were not informed of the situation until we were served with an eviction notice on Christmas Eve. This lack of communication has left us in the dark about the future of my son’s care and the potential disruption to his life. We should have been informed long before the notice was served, and given the opportunity to have a say in these negotiations that affect Stephen's future and well-being.

Even after we’ve begged Wiltshire Council to recognise Stephen as an individual, not merely a costing issue, all we’ve received are impersonal responses stating that our concerns are being forwarded, but no actual answers or action to date.

This is not just an isolated case—it is part of a much larger, national problem. Disabled individuals across the country are facing similar struggles. Care providers, like Choice Care, are having to make the impossible decision to evict vulnerable residents because councils refuse to meet the rising costs of care. This crisis is not just about Stephen—it's about people with complex needs being forced out of homes and care services because of a broken system that fails to support the voiceless.

We need your help. Wiltshire Council is targeting the voiceless—those who cannot fight back. As a family, we don’t have the resources or the legal means to fight this injustice, and there is no support for people like Stephen. We are calling on the public to stand with us. Please add your signature to urge Wiltshire Council to increase the funding necessary to allow Stephen to remain in his home at Old Orchard with his friends, just 10 minutes from his loved ones. He deserves the care and stability he has fought so hard for, and we need to ensure that he isn’t forced to endure another traumatic disruption. Join us in being the voice for the voiceless. They need to be heard, they are people not pawns.

Learn More About Stephen and His Story:

If you would like to learn more about Stephen and the people who love and care for him, you can follow him on social media. Stephen shares his journey and the things that bring him joy on his TikTok and Instagram pages. Please visit and follow him to stay updated:

TikTok: @save.stevie.t
Instagram: @stevie.t90 

Your support is vital to Stephen, and together, we can make sure his voice is heard. Thank you for standing up for him and for others like him. 

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#AngelmanSyndrome #SaveStevieT #StopTheMove #Love #TheAngelMan #KeepHimSafe #takingthedis #DisabilityRights #OurAngelman  #Carehomeeviction