Treloar’s supports Alice, Tommy and their family during lockdown

James, father of twins, tells us how Treloar’s supported his two vulnerable teenagers and the whole family during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) lockdown.

Our twins, Alice and Tommy are seventeen years old and both have severe physical disabilities. When the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic hit the UK my wife Georgie and I were extremely worried about how this would affect them. Everyone was aware how dangerous the virus was but the health implications for our two teenagers if, god forbid, they contracted the virus did not bear thinking about. It was vital that we did everything we could to protect them at home.

When the lockdown started we had so many questions going around in our heads; what would the implications be? How will we be supported? How will the twins continue their education and what about their night care? It felt very much like us and them, but then Treloar’s swung into action!

The support we received from the teachers and care staff was second to none. They created a fantastic curriculum and timetable for the twins to follow each day and key staff were available on Zoom and always at the other end of the phone if we needed them.

Alice and Tommy’s health was naturally our biggest concern but we were also very worried about their education. The provision at Treloar’s is outstanding with a whole team of experts on hand to teach them their lessons, administer their medication and keep them comfortable with physiotherapy exercises and other stimulation throughout the day. I was working full time from home which meant the majority of the home-schooling and care fell to Georgie. The pressure was immense.

As the realisation hit that lockdown was going to last for some time Treloar’s stepped up to the plate again by transporting equipment and members of staff to support the twins at home. If it hadn’t been for them I don’t know how we would have coped.

September is now here and the twins have thankfully returned to School probably looking forward to a break from Mum and Dad! There was no question that we felt comfortable for them to return because we know and have the confidence in Treloar’s to handle anything that is thrown at them. We knew that they were going back to a safe environment where every precaution had been taken and every risk assessment had been carried out. Staff were fully trained in using PPE and the classrooms and residential houses had all been modified to meet the strict but necessary guidelines.

There are not enough words to explain just how incredible Treloar’s has been over the past 6 months. Thanks to the amazing efforts from all of the Treloar’s family Alice and Tommy have continued to receive the exceptional education and care that the School has always provided. Going forward no one knows how long the country will be in this situation but Georgie and I feel reassured that our children are safe at Treloar’s and will be well cared for in the challenging months to come.