A disabled woman with a speech impediment was thrown out of a Wetherspoon pub this weekend after managers thought she was too drunk.
Grace Currie, 24, suffered a brain injury that causes her to slur her words, but managers and bouncers thought that she was drunk and refused to serve her a vodka and coke in The Shrewsbury Hotel on Saturday night.
Grace was involved in a serious car accident in 2010, that she was lucky to emerge from alive, which left her in a coma for six weeks and with lasting brain injuries.
Despite trying to explain this to staff at the Shropshire Wetherspoons pub, Grace says she was led out of the pub by bouncers.
She says the staff didn't even let her get hold of her coat and phone before escorting her out of the pub meaning that she was unable to get in touch with any of her friends that were on a night out with her.
She was left outside with no means of contacting anyone.
Luckily her personal carer, Netty Brook realised that she had not returned and went looking for her.
Grace, who lives in Bagley, Shropshire, then went home immediately in tears to her parent's house. Once her mum and dad heard of her ordeal they contacted the pub to complain.
Her dad, Graeme, said: "I just can't believe that this has happened to our poor Grace.
"She's done amazingly well in the space of seven years to go from being on her death bed, to being able to go out and enjoy a drink in a social setting.
"Over the past few years she's become much more independent, but is still very vulnerable and needs help from a full-time carer.
"Often, she has problems speaking - she can talk very slowly, slur her words and sometimes struggles to grasp for the right vocabulary.
"But the bar staff obviously just assumed that she was drunk - and the fact that she has mobility issues will have made it look much worse too."
Graeme, who himself works as a social worker, and Grace's mum Lorraine were understandably upset at his daughter's treatment at the hands of the bouncers.
He continued: "Not only did they escort her out, but they escorted her out backwards, so she would have been completely disorientated by the time that she stepped outside.
"A big male bouncer took her out, and she wasn't even allowed back in to get her bag or her coat. Her phone was inside, so she had no way to call for help.
"Eventually Netty went outside and found her there, scared and vulnerable and not knowing what she had done wrong.
"Netty made sure that the manager knew what had happened, and he confirmed straightaway that she wasn't drunk.
The pub has since apologised for what they said was a "misjudgement".
A spokesperson for JD Wetherspoon said: "At around 9.30pm on Saturday, door security at The Shrewsbury Hotel alerted the pub manager to the refusal of service of Grace Currie.
"The pub manager spoke with Grace and her companion, realising during the conversation that there had been a misjudgement.
"Subsequently, Grace's father has been invited to the pub, as the pub manager is keen to speak with him face-to-face, about the incident.
"We, again, apologise to Grace for the mistake and hope that this incident will help our staff manage future similar scenarios with better understanding."
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