Northumberland family stay at Premier Inn as home is without power

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Laura and Dave Venner’s Northumberland home is one of 240,000 across the country that has been affected by the recent storm. As of last night, there were still around 30,000 homes without power.

The family’s power went off at 11pm on Friday – when Storm Arwen battered parts of the country with 100mph gusts.

After the power went out, on Sunday the Venners moved from their Medburn home to the Premier Inn at Newcastle Airport.

Their temporary home is two accessible rooms for themselves and their four children – three of whom are disabled and rely on medical equipment.

They described it as an “awkward situation”.

Though the room Ms Venner is sharing with her youngest son, Oliver, is spacious, she said it was not enough for his needs.

She told ChronicleLive: “Because Oliver has a brain injury and cerebral palsy, he can’t sleep in a normal bed.

“Instead, he has to be in a safe space. It’s like a massive playpen that zips up and has fabric sides.”

Since arriving, he has had to sleep in a baby’s travel cot.

Ms Venner added: “He’s five years old and the size of a seven to eight-year-old so it’s not ideal.

“But he has to stay isolated to one area as he can’t put his hands out for safety and could injure himself at any point.”

Oliver usually has two additional carers to his parents, who also look after their children full-time.

But while they are in the hotel, looking after the children is entirely up to the parents.

Ms Venner said: “There’s no safe bathing or space for hoisting equipment so we don’t want the carers to cause themselves injuries from lifting him.”

Storm Arwen also saw a hospital appointment for the Venners’ eldest daughter, Abbie, who has cystic fibrosis, delayed for two days.

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Usually one of her parents would stay with her, but currently she is alone.

Ms Venner commented: “We know Abbie will be looked after by the nurses but she’s used to having her parents by her side. It’s just a nightmare.”

She also estimates that with the power out, around £1,000 worth of food – including their Christmas dinner – kept in three large freezers will have perished.

Ms Venner said: “It’s all ruined and we’re devastated. This storm has just taken over completely.”

Northern Powergrid have said that they will reimburse the Venners for their stay at the hotel, including breakfast and evening meals.

However, they have had to spend £400 of their Universal Credit and their carers’ allowance to secure the room.

As of Wednesday morning, their power was due to be restored by 10pm on Thursday evening.

However, Ms Venner believes they could be spending longer at the hotel before being able to return home.

“We’ve been getting updates since the beginning but we’re stuck here in limbo. I can understand it’s been a massive power cut and we’re not the only ones in this situation but it feels like there’s no end in sight.

“We could be stuck here over Christmas and obviously we don’t want that. We just want to go home.

A Northern Powergrid spokesperson told ChronicleLive: “We are unable to provide an estimated time for power to be restored for customers in the Medburn area at the moment, but I would like to reassure our customers that our teams are working to get the lights back on for customers as soon as we can.

“We have provided support to as many vulnerable customers as possible and are helping them to seek alternative accommodation where appropriate.”

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