DISABLED children in Dorset will have access to specialist car seats following a charity's plea for councils to review their rules.

The number of UK councils with potentially unlawful restrictions on the provision of essential equipment has dropped by more than a third in one year following a campaign by Newlife - The Charity for Disabled Children.

Over the past year, the charity has challenged councils that said they would not fund the equipment and now 105 councils, including Dorset Council, say they will be able to provide specialist car seats if a need is identified.

Clare Dangerfield, campaigning and public affairs manager at Newlife, said: "We applaud those local authorities that have listened to our concerns and worked with us to adapt their policies to allow frontline staff to arrange for specialist car seats to be provided to children where it is essential for their safety.

"It’s simply not acceptable for councils to use blanket ban policies to push costs back onto parents. While a standard car-seat costs just £100, the kind of adapted seat required by disabled and terminally ill children can cost up to 35 times as much. Forcing parents to cover the cost of equipment denied by their council due to austerity measures drives families into poverty.

"Policies like these also cause incredible amounts of unnecessary suffering."

Newlife revealed blanket bans are being used by councils across the country in relation to providing other equipment including walking frames, specialised buggies, arm supports and high-sided safety beds.

As a result, Newlife has provided equipment worth over £1 million to more than 1200 families in crisis in the past year alone, to ensure vulnerable children are not left at risk of serious injury or death.