22 / ➜
FEATURE
TEACHING & LEARNING
Emily Bennett and Gemma Costello from the National Acquired Brain Injury Learning and Education Syndicate (N-ABLES) discuss the progress being made in raising awareness of acquired brain injury (ABI) in education, and outline new guidance to support return to school. ver 40,000 children and young people (CYP) in the UK experience some kind of acquired brain injury every year (NHS England, 2018). The majority tyy of these will return to the school they attended before their injury or illness, and most will rely on school to play a core role in supporting their rehabilitation and adjustment. Despite this, many teachers and SENCOs report knowing little about ABI, and schools frequently feel unprepared and ill-informed to manage the new needs presented by a child returning to school after an ABI.
O
RETURNING TO SCHOOL AFTER ABI After an ABI, young people and their families are often faced with the challenge of adjusting to a ‘new normal’ in many areas of their lives. Returning to their education setting is highlighted by many young people as a key goal. Despite this, it is frequently cited as
WHAT IS AN ABI AND HOW DOES IT IMPACT ON A CYP’S EDUCATION? An ABI is an injury to the brain that is acquired after a period of ty typical y development. ABI is identified as the leading cause of death and disability tyy in childhood and can be the result of accident/trauma, infection, illness, stroke, tumour or hypoxic events to the brain. ABIs can range from mild (e.g. concussion) to severe, with the subsequent need for support in school varying from simple adaptations in the weeks after an injury, to long-term individual sup pport or chang ges in school placement.
pact on children Outcomes can im . Changes in ins ma across all do , otions are common behaviour and em ory ns se d an l ica ys ph as are cognitive, e CYP also experienc difficulties. Many in s ge an ue and ch high levels of fatig d communication. an ills sk l cia their so
na s e n c onne c t
nc
BIO
BIO
E M ILY BE NNE T T
GEMMA COSTELLO LLO
Emily is a Consultant Clinical Psychologist in Paediatric Neuropsychology at Nottingham Children’s Hospital.
Gemma is a Specialist Educational Psychologist in Paediatric Neuropsychology and the Head of Psychosocial Services at The Children’s Trust.
