Trust-Ed FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions
What is acquired brain injury (ABI)?
What effects does it cause?
What are our aims?
What are we doing?
Why is there a need for a new school?
Why is there a need for outreach and training facilities?
What have we done so far?
What happens next?
How can you help?
What is acquired brain injury (ABI)?
An injury to the brain after birth and the immediate neo-natal period caused by accidents or assaults (‘head injuries’) or by illness (e.g. brain tumours, meningitis). It is the leading cause of death and disability in children in the UK
What effects does it cause?
Interacting and often complex difficulties affecting cognition, behaviour, social and language skills, physical ability and emotional well-being.What are our aims?
To promote understanding and awareness of the long-term educational needs of children and young people with ABI within their development continuum. To disseminate information and to promote expertise in addressing these needs. To provide specialist short and long-term education and assessment for students with ABI.
What are we doing?
We have set up a not-for-profit, charitable company to provide day residential, long and short-term school facilities for children with ABI, plus outreach and training services.
Why is there a need for a new school?
There are currently no specialist school places for children or young people with ABI in the UK. Staff in existing schools report that they lack expertise regarding the educational needs of these children. ABI provokes a unique pattern of difficulties that can be difficult to identify and to assess.
Many children experience failure, disaffection and underperformance in other schools without good advice regarding tried and tested individual programmes that can be demonstrated for them in a functional setting.
There is a need for specialist interdisciplinary contributions in an education framework to assess and identify needs. The majority will require short or fixed-term placements, but a minority of children with ABI need a long-term specialist placement, as their needs cannot be appropriately met in other schools.
Why is there a need for outreach and training facilities?
Following a short-term specialist placement, there is a need for a child’s schools to receive ongoing support and advice. Also, as approximately 3% of children are affected by ABI each year and therefore the proportion of pupils in schools who have been affected is greater than this, a vital part of this work will be the dissemination of information and expertise on a nationwide basis, along with the provision of ongoing support services for families and professionals. There is a need for the development of accreditation for expertise in the education of these students.
What have we done so far?
We have completed an initial research and consultation exercise, which has reinforced the premise of need. We have established a core project team, a group of project consultants (professional advisors) and a parents' advisory group.
What happens next?
Having registered the organisation as a company and a charity. We are now carrying out more in-depth research and further consultation which will lead to detailed, evidence based, detailed business and project plans.
How can you help?
Donations We welcome donations to assist with our work.
Fund raising We also welcome those with the time and motivation to assist with fund raising.
Advice We would be pleased to hear from anyone who can offer advice either from professional or personal experience.
Forum Why not register with our on-line forum to share your ideas or to raise questions?
To offer help or to find out more about the project please use our contact form available here. Contact Us.
