A PENSIONER says she is a prisoner in her own home because housing association and council bosses have refused to install a wheelchair ramp at her house.

Rhoda Higson, aged 75, has suffered from chronic lung disease for the past seven years.

Last September, she fell and broke her hip.

When she returned home after more than two months in hospital, she asked Bolton At Home to fit a ramp outside her home to allow her to use her motorised wheelchair.

But housing bosses passed the matter on to social services, which carried out an assesment and refused to fit the ramp, saying Mrs Higson could still climb the step on her own.

Yet Bolton At Home, which manages the house in which she lives, on Hartfield Walk, Tonge Fold, had already fitted a stairlift.

The great-grandmother-of-six said: "I've always been so independent but I can't even get to the local shops without one of my son's taking me.

"I'm literally a prisoner in my own home."

Mrs Higson, who is also in remission from leukaemia, spends up to 10 hours a day hooked up to oxygen, and occasionally has to sleep with her oxygen mask on. She can only walk as far as her garden gate.

After her stay in hospital, Mrs Higson, who was one of the first residents on the street when the homes were first built more than 30 years ago, bought an electronic wheelchair so she could have some independence.

But she has never been able to use it as it is too big to fit through her front door and too heavy for her to carry down the steps at the back of her home.

Mrs Higson said: "I've worked all my life and all I'm asking for is a ramp. I just want to be able to get out. I'm trapped and it's so frustrating.

"With a ramp I would be able to get out on my own."

A council spokesman said: "Bolton At Home and adult social services department have already helped Mrs Higson with her mobility problems. In August last year, Bolton At Home installed a stair lift to help her get up and down the stairs and later adult services provided a handrail to assist her at the front door.

"The council's occupational therapist, who undertook an assessment in November said Mrs Higson did not qualify for a ramp because she was able to negotiate stepping in and out safely. However, as part of our ongoing monitoring the council is reviewing Mrs Higson's case and one of our officers will undertake a new assesment shortly."