Specialist Support Counselling Service

The impact of a VI disability on social and emotional wellbeing

Main issues at school

Finding where friends are : playtimes, lunchtimes, activities, sports , games lessons

Joining in conversations, missing non-verbal clues If you are blind - are the people you are talking to still

there? Not always being able to play outside Not being able to read signs correctly Bullying, teasing, feeling left out Wanting to be normal.

Main issues at home

Independent travel Finding things Everything takes longer, often late Over-protective parents School of hard knocks If you are blind - colour co-ordination Wanting to be the same as others – join groups with

other VI CYP as well as mixed peer groups.

Impact of disability on family

Many families split up as a result of dealing with a disabled child, so the child has even more problems to deal with

Single parent families may have financial problems and difficulties with time and transport commitments

This leads to greater feelings of loss, anger, blame, guilt and sadness

Impact of disability on future

Children are concerned about independent travel

Will I be able to drive? How will I meet friends when school has

ended? We encourage them to strive for whatever

they desire

Impact of disability on future

Parents are concerned about how much and when to tell children about degenerative or life limiting conditions

The implications of genetic counselling The correct choice of schools or colleges Some parents seem to build a brick wall in front of

their child and we have to encourage them to knock it down and see a future for them

What is the need?

Disabled children are 3 or 4 times more likely to suffer abuse. Disabled children are twice as likely to be bullied at school. Only 25% of visually impaired people gain employment. People with a visual impairment are twice as likely to become

depressed as adults. ChildLine reports that the rate of suicides in children is up by

14%. The Prince’s Trust reports 1 in 10 unemployed young adults

don’t think life is worth living. Parents of disabled children are more likely to split up. Disabled children frequently report feeling lonely and isolated.

Specialist Support Counselling Service

SSCS is a confidential counselling service for disabled children and young people (CYP) and/or their families to help them come to terms with their disability, deal with stress and trauma in their life and enable them to reach their full potential.

Specialist Support Counselling Service

Set up to allow CYP the opportunity to express their feelings and emotions related to their experience of being visually impaired.

At the same time it was acknowledged that parents would be experiencing a whole range of emotions from the point of diagnosis and at various transition points.

The cycle of grief is frequently experienced by both CYP and their parents.

The Cycle of Grief

Denial Anger (blame and guilt) Bargaining Depression Acceptance

Who refers into the service?

Initially we only accepted people who had a visual impairment, following the same criteria as the VI teaching team.

Referrals tended to come in from the VI team As more schools and hospitals learnt of the service

and requested referral information… Open referral system was developed Now schools, parents, children, hospitals, GPs,

children’s centres, professional services, CAMHS, CAF teams, physios, OTs, social services and disability services can all make referrals.

Reasons for referral

Friendship issues Isolation Bullying Acceptance of disability Family problems Anger management Cycle of grief Behavioural problems

Reasons for referral

Abuse and child protection Bereavement Parental separation Health difficulties Low self esteem and confidence Transitions Parent/child relationships Family breakdown

What do people want to talk about?

Often not directly related to the visual impairment but perhaps a friendship issue, a problem at home, or a relationship difficulty, which has been made more difficult because of the disability.

Anything and everything – just need someone to listen to them; a safe space to work through problems.

Parents worry about the future much more than CYP who are more concerned about day to day worries, especially before 14 years of age.

CYP then worry about maintaining friendships and everything that that entails, once the security/confines of school are lost.

The things people present with are often just the tip of the iceberg.

Impact on children and young people

Few of us are able to work when we stressed or unhappy. The impact of distressing or difficult situations can be felt even more acutely by children and young people than by adults.

Maslow's hierarchy of needs shows how safety, security, love and social needs must be met before cognitive functions can operate effectively and the individual can flourish.

Early intervention is essential to prevent more serious mental health issues arising.

What can counselling do?

Counselling helps CYP by giving them the time and opportunity to share problems, concerns or experiences with a trained counsellor in a non-judgemental and confidential setting.

Counselling is an effective early intervention strategy. It helps CYP function more effectively and can prevent a

deterioration in mental health, attitude and behaviour. In preventing these outcomes it is also very cost-effective. Time and time again our service has proved how invaluable it is

as a means of safeguarding CYP. We initiate CAF assessments and are ideally placed to raise child protection issues where relevant.

Counselling helps CYP people to…

find their own personal resources in times of crisis develop strategies to help overcome any emotional, social or

behavioural difficulties in their life develop confidence and self-esteem develop insight into and eventually acceptance of their disability find other people with disabilities to share experiences with and

develop friendships in small groups or on social activities where difficulties can be put into perspective with the help of positive disabled role models

gain insight into the complexity of relationships and their role within them which will impact positively on their learning potential

enable them to realise their full potential and enter the world of employment

Service Delivery

There is an open referral policy. Six sessions are offered initially and this can be

extended if needed. Counselling is generally on a one-to-one basis. We also run

Teen Groups Enrichment Groups Social Activities

SSCS is a citywide service and clients either live or go to school in Birmingham.

Service standards

All counsellors are fully qualified to at least diploma level which involves a 3 year course.

They are all experienced in working with children.

All counsellors work to BACP ethical guidelines. All staff have regular meetings with other

counselling staff and relevant professionals. All staff have disability specific training and on-

going professional dialogue.

In-service training…

can be provided to interested professionals…

on counselling skills on the impact of disability on the social and emotional

development of our vulnerable client base.

We specifically discuss the way counsellors for disabled people work differently to the generic school counsellor.

Evidence of good practice and outcomes

In order to gain funding year on year it is necessary to write quarterly reviews and annual reports for each funding organisation.

It is essential, therefore, to gain feedback from referrers, clients, schools and parents to prove how valuable we are.

Service feedback

Following a recent questionnaire sent out to all service users in the past year we have been able to establish our success.

As counsellors we are always being told how important we are to individuals and to schools and organisations, but the personal messages so powerfully written down on the questionnaires have given us a validation totally beyond our expectations.

Pupils write of…

feeling better, being more confident, accepting their condition, making friends, standing up to teasing and bullies, and coping with grief and future diagnoses.

“It helped me cope with everything.” “I didn’t want to tell my friends and family about

my problems; I felt scared.” “I am learning to treat people the way I want them

to treat me back.”

Parents declare…

a better understanding of their child, whilst their child has a better understanding of their condition. They are more relaxed, family relationships improve, and the child has a better attitude to school.

“Initially I didn’t think this was for me, however I realised I was able to offload a lot of my concerns. I still have a long way to go, but with my counsellor’s help, they should be overcome.”

Parents declare…

“If I am honest, it’s kept my marriage together. I think that after her visits I feel more confident with my husband and able to talk to him. It’s given me a quality of life.”

“A lifeline and a space to breathe amongst the activity of dealing with my emotions and the statementing process.”

Parents

“This service has been a Godsend to me and my family. When Jan started I was an emotional wreck and if I hadn’t had any other children I would probably have given up! She has made such a difference to me, I am able to be myself again. Even though every day is difficult I am able to handle it rather than breaking down.”

Schools…

repeatedly tell us how helpful the service has been to them and their pupils: “No words can describe the difference that the counselling service has made to ‘H’. Since accessing the service ‘H’ is so much more confident, happy, outgoing and secure. The service that ‘H’ received was wonderful and her counsellor Milly was incredible.”

“Very positive outcomes indeed and for one child I believe ‘life changing’.”

Schools…

“The counselling service arranged for a wheelchair user from another school to meet wheelchair users from our school. This was a wonderful day for children and parents. We have also been on theatre trips, for 1 particular child in a wheelchair he had never been on such a trip before and only had this opportunity because of the counselling service. We have really appreciated the support from this service. They have helped us focus on the whole child, particularly their emotional needs, which could easily be overlooked in mainstream schools when struggling to include children with quite complex needs. I feel this service is vital if we are to continue making inclusion work.”

Referrers…

often feel a sense of relief. During a phone call from a SENCO in a mainstream

school, she explained about her pupil’s needs and I explained how we could help. We talked for nearly half an hour and she repeatedly said how she had tried so many different agencies for help but no one had been able to. She then received our leaflet through the internal post. She said how she felt so appreciative of our service as she had long realised there was this terrible gap in services that no one was able to fill… until now.

Sometimes the referrer needs a listening ear too, because the journey they go on in search of help for their pupils can be fraught with frustrations.

Referrers…

Another comment from a physio at a special school said: “Please pass on my heartfelt thanks for such an efficient and caring service. It is like a dream come true to be able to refer our troubled children on to a service such as yours.”

Good Luck

If you decide to set up a service please don’t hesitate to contact me or the service for support.

Sadly, because of the loss of funding, the whole team are being made redundant next year. I now have a new job managing the IAPT service in Gloucestershire.

SEALVI

Social and emotional aspects of learning with a Visual Impairment

Group of teachers and professionals meeting 1 or 2 times a year for presentations, speakers and the opportunity to network and share good practice

Contact me initially as secretary has just left

Contact details

helen.harper@birmingham.gov.uk jan.bagnall@glos.nhs.uk

0121 675 8514 (office Birmingham) 01452 543992 (Jan’s new work number)

Thank you

Any questions?