I live in Alis Shed 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. I am now pretty much bed bound. My parents care for me and no longer have to travel every day. It has changed all our lives for the better, especially mine, as I now feel part of the family again. My nephews were just little boys when I was disabled and I have missed so much of their growing up. Now they are both young men with their own unique personalities, making their own individual stamp on the world. I am so proud of them. Moving into the shed means that they now come to see Auntie Ali quite often. When I am well enough, Alis Shed is visited by people from various towns and cities. One friend even comes from Devon to see us. I am very blessed in so many ways. Alis Shed is beautifully made (in our opinion as a family) but also in todays climate with young people unable to get onto the property ladder, and with elderly members of the family struggling too, I feel that Alis Shed is the way forward. Alis Shed is very special because it is my home. It is a space at the bottom of Mum and Dads garden that allows me to be cared for by the people who love me the most in this world. More importantly for me, Alis Shed means that I dont need to be institutionalised as my health deteriorates. I have my own favourite things around me, including a unique commission that I planned during the initial stages, which was to have a stained glass window in my bedroom above my bed. I had only just lost my best feline friend, Alix, the week before I moved here. Alix, came to live with me almost immediately after I had been disabled and remained so loyal to me for 16 years. He was only 7 weeks old when I first met him. I discovered that he had been born at the same time that the 2nd tower collapsed in September 2001. He was very special indeed and deserved to be remembered in a very Special way. Alis Shed does that!
I left the family home when I was 20 to pursue further education and a career etc. When I was 28 I was permanently disabled due to a spinal disease. I had a series of spinal surgeries over subsequent years whilst still trying to live in my own home but eventually I had to leave and I moved into a Leonard Cheshire Disability home. Two years ago my health was deteriorating and I needed more help. As a family we decided that I needed to move back home. I knew that I had lived on my own for far too long not to have my own space and so the idea of living in the back garden eventually became a reality on May 12th 2018. The first thing I purchased for my shed was a slate plaque with Alis Shed engraved on it. This was before any building work had even started.