Acquired brain injury charity to expand community support service

The Children’s Trust, which already runs the service at the Sheffield Children’s Hospital and Nottingham Children’s Hospital, is to use the money to expand into three more hospitals: University Hospital, Southampton; St George’s Hospital, London; and Bristol Royal Hospital for Children.

The expansion means an estimated 1,300 children with acquired brain injury will be supported over the next 12 months.

The service was created to provide specialist support for the sometimes hidden challenges children and young people with an acquired brain injury face, such as communication, social and behavioural problems. The service sees a brain injury specialist clinician based in each hospital to work directly with children.

Katy James, head of brain injury community services at The Children’s Trust, said: “Brain injury can be a life-changing and ongoing condition and its effects can often be hidden, which means that the challenges children face are not being recognised and go unsupported.

“In particular, children can appear to be healthy and have made a good physical recovery but are struggling with the pressures of school and relationships in the context of changes brought about by their brain injury, which in turn can lead to issues of low self-esteem and at its worst, mental health issues.”

She added that the service has a strong focus developing support across schools, families and community mental health services.

The first brain injury support service was launched in Sheffield in 2010, with the Nottingham service launching three years later. Over the last five years, 1,000 children have been referred.

It is estimated that around 40,000 children a year have a brain injury as a result of an accident or illness.

The Children’s Trust chief executive Dalton Leong says the charity’s long-term aim is to expand the service across the UK.