A MOTHER from Oxford is desperately trying to raise enough money through an online campaign so that her severely disabled daughter can receive vital round-the-clock-care.

Megan Rees, 24, says she has been forced to put all her hopes into the generosity of others after NHS bosses said her four-year-old daughter, Ariella Skeete, no-longer meets the criteria for Continuing Healthcare funding to pay for overnight care.

The youngster, who lives with her mother in Headington, was given just a 10 per cent chance of survival after she was born with congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH), which restricts the development of her lungs, and Nager syndrome, a genetic disorder which affects the development of the face, hands and arms.

After battling against the odds, Ariella now needs the help of tubes to breath and eat and requires 24-hour supervision to make sure her airways do not become blocked.

Miss Rees said: “They’re saying Ariella doesn’t tick the boxes to receive care but her requirements haven’t changed - her needs are still just as high.

“We can’t understand that.

“We haven’t been told exactly why she now doesn’t qualify and have asked for all the paperwork to see if we can appeal.”

She added: “I’m angry and disappointed that I’m expected to deal with all of this on my own.

“It’s already disheartening to feel that you can’t look after your daughter without support, and then when that support is stripped away you just feel so vulnerable and helpless.”

Miss Rees moved to Oxford from Woodcote in 2015 to be closer to the John Radcliffe Hospital where Ariella still receives treatment.

The NHS funding had provided an income for the young family and allowed Ariella’s father, Renado Skeete (who lives in Reading), to provide the specialised care throughout the night.

However, without the funding Mr Skeete has had to seek employment, meaning Miss Rees will be forced to take on care duties around the clock when the NHS funding stops in September.

Miss Rees and Mr Skeete have now started a crowd funding campaign to help privately fund overnight care until staff at Mabel Prichard Special School, where Ariella will start in the Autumn, have undergone special training - however the family have been told this could take up to six months.

Speaking about Ariella’s care needs, Miss Rees said: “It’s like breathing through a straw and that could become blocked at any time, or if she wriggles, which she often does, it could come out.

“We are just asking [the authorities] to continue the funding until there’s someone at school [who can provide care during the day], then I can sleep while she’s at school and watch her at night.

“As it is, all the responsibility is going to fall on my shoulders; I’m going to have to stay awake 24 hours a day, I just can’t get my head around what they’re expecting me to do.

“If I fell asleep and something happened to her I’d never forgive myself.”

Oxfordshire County Council has confirmed it is now working with Oxfordshire Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) to determine what social care funding is available.

A spokesperson for the CCG said: “We are all working together to ensure care needs of the child are being met.

“While the child does not now meet the criteria for NHS Continuing Healthcare we have met her mother to explain this and that her daughter’s social care package will continue.

“Health funding will continue for three months while health and social care staff work together to make sure the child’s care needs are safely met.”

An Oxfordshire County Council spokesperson said: “We will be working with the family and other agencies to assess needs in the light of the decisions being taken by the NHS.”

To donate to the Miss Rees and Mr Skeete’s go fund me campaign visit https://www.gofundme.com/help-us-fund-ariellas-care.