A housebound stroke victim was forgotten about by social services on Boxing Day.

Wheelchair-bound Fred Wood, 87, of Elmstead Market, is paralysed down one side and has not been able to use his arm or leg since his stroke seven years ago and needs help to get out of bed and use the toilet.

A home help visits him twice a day and he has a social worker and meals on wheels, but Essex County Council's social services department has admitted it forgot about him on Boxing Day because of staff sickness.

An Essex County Council spokeswoman said: "We did fail to visit on his morning visit on Boxing Day and we have apologised to him."

She said his home carer was sick and two other carers had flu.

Staff had to draw up a list of people who needed seeing to cover for the carers who were sick.

The spokeswoman said: "Unfortunately his name was not included on that list. That was due to human error. She added: "We did call him back to see if he had assistance."

And she said the evening visit was late as staff did not know the precise location of Mr Wood's home.

She added social services was very busy over the ten-day Christmas and New Year period with staff taking as many calls as they would normally in a month. Mr Wood called his friend Ben Welham when his helper did not turn up on Boxing Day to appeal for help.

Mr Welham and his wife Sarah visited at 12.50pm to help him and Mrs Welham went back in the evening to get him ready for bed.

They said no helper had turned up when they left him at 10pm. Mr Welham said: "How can they forget a paralysed man in a wheelchair on Boxing Day of all things?"

He said he wanted social services to ensure that his friend is never forgotten again. He added Mr Wood would have had no help if he could not reach the phone to call for aid.

Mr Wood said he thought it was "lousy" that he was forgotten and he was adamant that he did not want to go into a home. He said: "I do want to stay in my own house. I do not ask for much.

"All I ask is they get me out of bed at 8.30am and put me in bed at 8.30pm, that's all I need."

Forgotten - stroke victim Fred Wood had to call on a friend for help.

Picture: STEPHANIE MACKRILL

Converted for the new archive on 19 November 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.