Carl is home from hospital . He has a mini zimmer-frame for indoor use , and a wheelchair for outdoors . He has mastered the chair as only a child can in such a short time . I am unsure how long we will have use of the chair though . Fortunately he is also able to use the stairlift that we have for his mum, so as soon as we teach him which buttons to press he will be able to go up and down on his own .
'Risk assessment' at school rules him out of attending there for 8 weeks because his classroom is upstairs . They can't accommodate him elsewhere , and they are not willing to provide us with work for him to do at home . The reason they give is that we can't educate him in the same way they do it , and I guess to a certain extent they are correct . I haven't the slightest idea about how numberlines work . Although it is a long ime since I went to school I am sure I could sort at least a minimum level of an education for him at home . FFS .. His mum is a parent ambassador at the school and is only 4 weeks away from finishing a training course to be a teaching assistant at the neighbouring school . All we asked for was some homework , and we were ripped to bits and treated like we have deliberately put him in this position . A game of twenty questions regarding him being in hospital twice already this year was fun . I know they have to keep an eye out for kids thay may be getting abused , but in Feb he was in hospital for an eye operation , and this time he was in because he was run over by a car . The questions they ask made me feel like they were thinking I was guilty of gouging him and throwing under the Zafira .
If I was to keep him out of school for so long I would probably get a custodial , but it is ok for them to not allow him any education for three months ( including school term breaks either side of his exclusion) .

Rant over

Mate, that is absolute bullsh*t! I teach Maths in a secondary school - whenever we have kids off for an extended period of time, even if it's only a couple of weeks, we always get requests from their Head of Year for work to send home for them - they take it really seriously and hound teachers until they have a decent amount to send home. They then liaise regularly with parents to find out if they need any more work / help with the work that they do have. I've had copious email conversations back and forth with parents in the past when they've been off school for a while following operations etc. We can't be the only school which does this either!

The bottom line is they have a responsibilkity to provide an education for your son - whether he be on site, or off it for medical reasons etc. If he gets poor results due to falling behind, it affects them as well as affecting him! And if a parent is willing to help a child work whilst they're off school, they should grab it with both hands, as not all parents are that bothered! You may not be able to teach to the standard of a qualified teacher, in the same way that I wouldn't be able to do any other job that I'm not qualified for, but like you say, you're more than able to help him out however possible, and you'd think the school would take any work/help over nothing!

How old is your son? I can't promise anything, but may be able to get hold of / point you in the direction of some resources you can use oif they flat out refuse to give you anything. PM me if there's anything I can do to help.

He is seven years old , and his school is in LS12 . His mum actually assists in a year three class , which is the same year as he is in, but at a different school .
As I am typing this the 'phone has rung and Mrs BR is having a conversation with a lady called Madeleine about getting him some education over the next couple of months .

Firstly, what a tremendous effort-all rugby fans should be proud and support this.

Without wishing to derail the thread-I'm a teacher at a primary school in ls12-the ones who sang on the pitch prior to the hudds match! I would have thought the school were obliged to try and get him into school, even if that means an lsa working with him downstairs part time, perhaps just for a couple of hours a day. Being cut off from school life for so long is awful for him. At the very least they should be able to send a few text book pages of maths and a bit of reading comprehension work at his level which don't need to be taught to him but keep him busy and his brain working.

I'm struggling to think which schools in la12 have 2 floors - I presume it's an armley one, not wortley or farnley?

Good luck with everything

Thankyou for the good wishes . I think I know which LS12 school sang at that game . (see PM ) . If it is that school then that is where Mrs BR is doing her TA course .

Back on track and a bump . I have been advised that the best footwear for long road walks are soft construction comfortable trainers . Preferably cheap ones as they tend to have more 'give' in them , but to take two different sizes . Eg : size nine in the morning , and size ten for late afternoon/evening . Apparently it is the best way to avoid blisters as your feet grow/swell with the constant pounding . Anyone able to confirm that ?

Now I think about it, there were two LS12 schools there-I'm at the other one!

Thanks Ferdy . Will see If I can pay them a visit at the weekend .

Just seen an advert for aldi as well. They are doing an offer on loads of cheap walking gear. Might be worth a trip out

BUMP

Quote: El Diablo "Is there a sponsor page for this, or a link to donate? As much as I dislike turning the Bulls into a charity, that feeling doesn't stretch as far as not rewarding this kind of effort. And if you raise the money you're talking about, I hope the current incumbents make you and your brother co-chairmen.'" www.charitygiving.co.uk/james2odsal yes there is!

Quote: El Diablo "Is there a sponsor page for this, or a link to donate? As much as I dislike turning the Bulls into a charity, that feeling doesn't stretch as far as not rewarding this kind of effort. And if you raise the money you're talking about, I hope the current incumbents make you and your brother co-chairmen.'" www.charitygiving.co.uk/james2odsal yes there is!

Come on boys and girls , you know you want to . James is undertaking quite a task , and that alone deserves our respect and support . If you can't see your way to doing it for the Bulls , then do it for James .

Couldnt have put it better. Also if "Highbury Rhino" is on here could he/she please identify themself? I'd love to profusely thank them for the £50 donation.

That we're all coming together for this is excactly what makes our game so great. Many thanks

James and Andy

Quote: Toonbull "www.charitygiving.co.uk/james2odsal yes there is!'" Done. BaldRick, only wear cheap trainers for this if you want to need the wheelchair yourself at the end of it. I would opt for some sort of decent approach shoe. Merrells are generally a good option, but get something that suits the shape of your feet - New Balance and Asics also both do some very good walking trainers. You want something with plenty of cushioning since it'll all be on hard surfaces. Sock-wise, somebody bought me a couple of pairs of these a few years ago and they are now the sock of choice for anything I do over about 10-12 miles: www.hillyclothing.co.uk/twinskin ... s-anklet-4

Quote: Toonbull "www.charitygiving.co.uk/james2odsal yes there is!'" Done. BaldRick, only wear cheap trainers for this if you want to need the wheelchair yourself at the end of it. I would opt for some sort of decent approach shoe. Merrells are generally a good option, but get something that suits the shape of your feet - New Balance and Asics also both do some very good walking trainers. You want something with plenty of cushioning since it'll all be on hard surfaces. Sock-wise, somebody bought me a couple of pairs of these a few years ago and they are now the sock of choice for anything I do over about 10-12 miles: www.hillyclothing.co.uk/twinskin ... s-anklet-4

Which I can't.



Which I could.