IT WILL be a special Christmas for one Hereford family as National Star opens its long-term living for young people with complex disabilities.

For the first time in eight years Jack Lofting is living in his home county of Herefordshire and now just 10 minutes away from his family.

“To have Jack so close by is the best Christmas present we could ever have,” his mother Joanna said.

“It means we can pop into to see him as often as we like and we can involve him in so much more.”

Jack, 24, was the first to move into the refurbished bungalows at 1 Ledbury Road which will be home for seven young people with disabilities.

National Star, a charity which supports young people with complex disabilities and learning difficulties, bought the property in 2018.

Jack received an acquired brain injury from meningitis at the age of 13 months. It left him with complex disabilities and extremely challenging behaviour.

Last year, for the first time in his life, Jack did not see his family on Christmas Day because the care home he was in did not have the staff needed to drive him from Gloucester to Hereford.

When his mother heard about 1 Ledbury Road being bought, she quickly sought a move for her son.