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Epilepsy

The NCYPE recognises that for many people epilepsy can seem a frightening and unpredictable condition. We recognise that teachers need training and information to understand how best to support students with epilepsy. As well as being at the cutting edge of research, we run the Childhood Epilepsy Information Service and operate a helpline five mornings a week.

Champions for Childhood Epilepsy

Children and young people with epilepsy often face a ‘triple whammy’ – the effect of the condition itself, poor health and educational support, and the social stigma still (wrongly) attached to the condition.

Since 2008, the NCYPE has been actively campaigning to

improve services for children and young people with epilepsy. The Champions for Childhood Epilepsy Campaign is pressing politicians, policymakers and practitioners across health and education services to work with us to provide better support for these young people.

The education strand of the campaign has been piloting this work with 21 schools of all types. Participating schools nominate a member of staff to be their ‘epilepsy champion’ (EC) and receive a full day of training from the NCYPE. They then return to their schools to review existing practice and policy, becoming a valuable resource for the whole school.

The EC maintains links with the NCYPE, and is key to

promoting epilepsy awareness and best practice in the long term – for example when colleagues are writing individual health plans, planning school trips, or when a concern is raised about a pupil’s progress. The EC can also help raise epilepsy awareness across the school and ensure staff receive the training they need.

Alison Cornell, coordinator of the NCYPE’s Champions for Childhood Epilepsy Campaign education pilot, says: “All our epilepsy champions were extremely positive about the training. From head teachers to school support staff, most said they had no idea about the impact epilepsy can have on learning. It was clear the teachers we worked with don’t just want ‘to cope’, they want to fully understand and meet the needs of children with epilepsy in their class. Without this support, many teachers will struggle to understand, and the reality of the inclusion agenda will continue to be poorer outcomes for too many children with epilepsy.”

Supporting schools

Following the pilot phase, the Champions for Childhood Epilepsy Campaign is developing a comprehensive package of resources to support schools in implementing best practice for students with epilepsy, including:

• a comprehensive distance-learning package for schools, available soon from the NCYPE at minimal cost

• telephone and online advice for teachers, parents and students via the Childhood Epilepsy Information Service (Mon-Fri 9am- 1pm) on 01342 831342 or enquiry@ncype.org.uk

• a training session from one of our epilepsy specialists

• the opportunity to book staff into training at the NCYPE

• tailor-made packages – including a full training day – at or near your own school.

To register your interest in the Champions for Childhood Epilepsy Campaign, call Alison Cornell on 01342 832243 or email campaign@ncype.org.uk.

The NCYPE is grateful to the Peter Harrison Foundation, the Hugh Fraser Foundation, the Linbury Trust, the Rank Foundation and the Gosling Foundation for their generous support with our Champions for Childhood Epilepsy Campaign work.

For more information...

Discover more about the campaign – and share your experiences – on the NCYPE website – at www.ncype.org.uk/campaign.

Download the NUT-commissioned research report The Costs of Inclusion from: www.teachers.org.uk/node/2269.

The NCYPE will be among the organisations represented at ‘Maximising achievement for children with medical conditions in mainstream schools’, a one-day conference hosted by the NUT’s CPD programme on 12 November 2010. For details, see the CPD pull-out in the centre of this magazine.

“From head teachers to school support staff, most said they had no idea about the impact epilepsy can have on learning.”