Inspirational blind twins open new Barchester care home

Twin brothers, who lost their sight a few years ago due to a rare genetic condition and yet are determined to live life to the full, have officially opened Beaufort Grange Care Home in Stoke Gifford.

Identical twins, Daniel and Michael Smith both have an extremely rare genetic disorder - Lebers Optic Neuropathy - that has resulted in total loss of vision.

Daniel is the first blind engineer ever to graduate from Bristol University and Michael graduated from King’s College London, reading Geography, and was part of the Team GB Paralympics football team. He will start law school shortly and has secured a training contract with a top law firm in London.

The inspirational duo were joined at the care home in Cheswick Village by Layla Reid, an eight-year-old girl, who cares for her mother who suffers from epilepsy.

Layla recently wrote a book called ‘Epilepsy book for kids’ to help other children understand more about epilepsy through the first-hand experience she has gained. She is working with Young Epilepsy to make a film, which will be delivered in schools all over the UK to raise awareness of epilepsy.

These three extraordinary people were presented by Barchester care homes with a cheque for their chosen charities. Layla chose Young Carers and Daniel and Michael chose Blind in Business.

Alexa Crew, new manager of Beaufort Grange Care Home, said: “I am really looking forward to make this house a home. We already have 15 new residents ready to join the Beaufort Grange family over the next few weeks and I am delighted that our founder residents, Barbara Heath and Irene Jones, and their families, were with us to enjoy the celebrations.”

Beaufort Grange,which can care for up to 74 people, has been specifically designed to provide high-quality residential, nursing and dementia care.

Barchester is the only care provider listed in The Sunday Times Top 25 Big Companies To Work For 2013.