Glasgow family receive 'life-changing' £30K donation to help six-year-old quadriplegic son

A family from Glasgow have received a “life-changing” donation of £30,000 to make their home more suitable for their quadriplegic son.

Emma Jordan’s six-year-old son Murray lives with quadriplegic cerebral palsy and uncontrolled epilepsy after surviving a stroke just 12 hours after his birth.

Emma, and Murray’s dad, Peter, identified in 2021 that £30,000 was needed for a new bedroom and wet room on the ground floor of the family home to provide essential care for their son.

The mum from Glasgow, a care worker with national children’s charity Kibble, was facing the prospect of moving from the family home and upheaving their two other children Fraser, 9, and Sophia, 1.

Mum Emma said: “As Murray’s parents, we felt that we should be able to pay for the changes we needed within the home and we couldn’t bring ourselves to ask for help.

“But, after two years, we realised it just wasn’t possible and we started to mention to people around us about the fundraising needed.

“The young people at Kibble really rallied around and started to come up with ideas including a superhero walk and a donation bucket but when I reached out to the senior team for approval, they came back to say that they would actually help to go further.”

The Jordan family from Glasgow received a donation for construction work on their home. Supplied

Kibble decided to host a charity ball at St Mirren Football Club and reached out to all of its suppliers for support in attending the event.

Construction company Cleland Joiners & Builders made an offer to do the full build extension of the home for free while SGS Landscapes agreed to refresh the garden to make it more accessible for their son.

Kibble Group had already committed to matching up to £15,000 of money raised and will continue to do so.

The move means that the family no longer need to physically carry their son up and down the stairs every day.

Emma said: “I cannot begin to put into words how thankful we are.

“We’ve had to fight for every single bit of help we’ve been given to support Murray so this is absolutely incredible and it really is life changing for our family.

“Without this support, we had been told we’d have to move house which was heartbreaking for us – we have three young children who have grown up here. I just keeping asking why people are helping. I can’t believe it.”

Jim Gillespie, chief executive at Kibble, said: “Murray’s story is one that touches the hearts of everyone and anyone who hears it, and Emma has such a strong relationship with the young people she supports at Kibble, that they’ve rallied round her and Murray since day one.

Construction company Cleland Joiners & Builders made an offer to do the full build extension of the home for free. Supplied

“When we fully understood the support she and Murray needed, there really was no hesitation to step in and I’m grateful to both Cleland Joiners & Builders and SGS Landscapers for their support.”

Derek Cleland, director at Cleland Construction, said: “It’s wonderful to be able to help Emma and the family. When Kibble got in touch, there was no question for us and with the help and generosity of our long-standing suppliers we are completing the build for free and at no cost to the family.

“We can’t wait to see Murray’s reaction to his new home, set out just the way he needs it.”

Brian Hamilton, managing director at SGS Landscapes, said: “We were delighted to be involved in the work to support Emma and the family.

“When we heard about Murray’s story, we wanted to help in any way possible. We hope our part will go some way to making things a bit easier for Emma and the family.”

Kibble Group has bases across central Scotland and supports at risk children and young people (aged 5-26) across the UK.