How the Fund gave 11-year-old Emily new-found independence

When Emily was born prematurely, the months and years to follow were filled with worry for parents Jon and Hannah about the uncertainty of her health. Thanks to the RAF Benevolent Fund, the family have received the financial support they needed to pull them through a difficult time, and Emily, now 11, has been able to thrive with her new-found independence.

Born prematurely at 28 weeks, Emily had a difficult start in life. Her mum, Hannah, said: “We felt like something was wrong when we noticed that Emily wasn’t meeting milestones. We were repeatedly told that her prematurity meant that she would take longer to develop, but something didn’t feel right instinctively.”

Jon added: “We kept pushing for answers at hospital visits; Emily’s care was transferred to a children’s hospital in Sheffield where she was diagnosed with cerebral palsy and from then onwards, we started to learn more about her condition.

“It didn’t help with being in the military and moving around a lot over the years. In 2014 we decided we needed to buy a house and look towards settling down.”

Jon served in the RAF Police for over 22 years and spent most of his career in the Special Investigations Branch, touring in Afghanistan and Iraq and retiring from his service as a Sergeant in 2019.

Jon decided to leave the RAF when it was becoming increasingly difficult to be away from home. He said: “I was on tour in Qatar in 2017, but I returned early because it was breaking Hannah. Emily was four years old at the time and didn’t understand why she could see daddy on a video call but not in person.”

Jon was given a compassionate posting and finished his service at RAF Linton on Ouse. He is now training to become a driving instructor to work flexibly around his family.

When they realised they would need to make adaptations to their home in Harrogate to support Emily in the long-term, the family contacted their local authority who had agreed they would be eligible for help towards an extension on their home. However, they would only be able to contribute a percentage of the cost of the downstairs bedroom and ensuite renovations for Emily.

The Caffrey’s were made aware of the Fund’s support through a friend who was an RAF Warrant Officer and reached out to see if they would be eligible for financial assistance. A grant was approved by the Fund to go towards the cost of the building work to make downstairs living more accessible for Emily, which also consisted of making the garden a safer, more usable space.

Hannah recalled: “When the Fund rang and told me we’d been approved – I cried. I couldn’t believe it.”

Jon added: “The new facilities downstairs have given Emily her own independence as she has limited mobility. The wet room is life-changing for showering Emily and having a toilet downstairs has made toilet training so much easier.

“The extension has future-proofed our home and is the perfect long-term solution for our family.”

Jon continued: “The garden has helped us enormously; we now have artificial grass because Emily spends most of her time on her knees. The garden is now level and has ramped access onto the decking so she can access the whole garden and make use of it all.”

The Fund has also supported Emily with a specialist horse riding saddle and a new trike.

According to her parents, Emily is undeterred by any challenges she faces in life.

In 2023, Emily completed the Yorkshire Abilities Triathlon – a triathlon put on for participants with disabilities. She completed a 50m swim, a 1500m bike ride with her new trike, and an 800m run with her walker, raising over £3000 for the Fund.

Following the epic challenge, Emily won the Sporting Superstar award (12 and under) at the Yorkshire Children of Courage Awards for her inspiring fundraising efforts.

Jon said: “When Emily was first getting assessed, there was talk that she was never going to be able to walk or talk. And she keeps surprising us with the new levels she makes – she’s a determined little thing!”

He concluded: “We couldn’t have done it without the Fund. The saddle and trike have helped Emily lot, but the grant for the house has been our biggest support – without the Fund I don’t know how things would have ended up.”