A DISABLED youngster has been helped by a charity bike ride after social services failed to fund a special air mattress for him.

Bill Davison's eight-year-old son, Robert, suffers from cerebral palsy and epilepsy, but social services were unable to provide the mattress to help Robert's bedsores.

"Social services said it would only provide one type of mattress," said Mr Davison, of St John's, Worcester. "It was not suitable for Robert.

"Out of the money raised we are to be given £400 for the mattress. We rely on this sort of thing because disabled aids are so expensive."

Mr Davison, who has worked as a safety engineer for GPU Power UK for 18 years, helped organise the 140-mile charity bike ride.

A total of £3,400 was raised on the day, and it was donated to the NSPCC, which will be setting up a special trust fund for Robert. This will pay for the mattress and help finance a specially-adapted car for the family.

Around 60 riders took part in the charity bike ride in July, travelling from Eastnor Castle, Ledbury to Newtown, Wales, and finishing at Graftonbury Gardens, Herefordshire.

"For the past six years I organised the event myself but it made me ill because there was so much work involved so I had help this year," said Mr Davison, who also has a five-year-old son Peter.

GPU Power UK, previously Midlands Electricity, donated £500 towards the marshall's expenses from its Staff Community Links Awards Scheme.

A spokesman for Worcestershire County Council said that the authority had the second lowest funding in the whole of Britain.

"The bed would have been a great advantage to Robert but the Government stipulates that social services' role is to provide support and advice to his family, not beds," he said.

"It's difficult and we do sympathise."