Learning Disability Week (15th-21st June) - Coping with lockdown when your little one is disabled
Families from across the UK are facing the prospect of keeping their children at home for the remainder of the summer, as the Government prepares to delay school and nursery openings until the autumn term. For any parent, this isn’t welcome news, as they’re busy trying to handle home-schooling, working from home and the normal daily routine, with no end in sight. But spare a thought for the parents of little ones with a learning disability, as they struggle to navigate the complexities of their child’s specific needs, whilst stuck in the four walls of home.
For Katy and Ben, from Buckinghamshire, lockdown brings all manner of additional considerations into play. Their little boy, Caleb, who is 20 months old, has Down's syndrome. Since Caleb was born, Katy and Ben have taken him to a variety of classes, appointments and groups, to ensure he has the best start in his cognitive and physical development. When lockdown was first enforced in March, all of Caleb’s regular appointments were cancelled, or postponed, indefinitely.
“If I’m being honest, being home all the time and missing out on his classes and sessions was a lot to deal with,” explained Katy. “But we took a proactive approach, coming up with new ways we could keep him happy, relaxed and engaged at home. All of the activities we planned are created to continue with his existing development, as much as we can. And although these have been carefully considered with Caleb in mind, I’m sure many of these could help any parents out there struggling to keep a sense of normality during lockdown.”
Katy’s top tips
1. Caleb has really been missing his Water Babies lessons - he usually has a half an hour swimming lesson at Booker Park School on a Thursday - so we’ve created his very own water park in the back garden! Whenever the weather is warm, we encourage him to have a splash around and play with his toys. He’s been swimming with Water Babies since he was six weeks old, so we don’t want him to lose the sense of confidence he has when he’s in and around the water
2. People with Down’s syndrome often struggle with low muscle tone - swimming is a great way to strengthen Caleb’s core. We fill a bath for him most days, so he can splash around and practise rolling over. Whilst this doesn’t replace the swimming exercises he does in the pool, this keeps him as active and engaged as possible
3. We’ve changed the layout of some of the most familiar rooms in the house, like his bedroom and the living room, to give him as much of a change of scenery as we can. Our days are usually filled with trips to the park, various appointments or lunch with friends, so I’m trying to inject some of the variety that he’s familiar with
4. Every day, we sing some of his favourite songs with him, incorporating Makaton signing as we sing the words, which improves his cognitive development and communication skills. One of his favourite actions at Water Babies is ‘Jelly on a Plate’, when the children sit on a float and find their balance, so we often end up singing that one at least a few times a day!
“One of the key ways we keep Caleb calm is to keep calm ourselves. Children feed off their parent’s emotions, so we’ve found that keeping a smile on our faces and doing some of his favourite things together as a family has made all the difference. These are just little changes we’ve made for the good of our family and they’re so easy to replicate if other parents think they would help them too,” added Katy.
Parents, like Katy and Ben, have also found digital educational resources invaluable during this lockdown period, turning to social media to source fun, free videos and tutorials they can do together, as a family. Water Babies has created a whole host of free demonstrations, available via live stream or catch-up, teaching everything from water confidence to at-home safety tips - and even a Friday afternoon story time!
To find out more about the free educational resources and access the portal, visit www.facebook.com/WaterBabiesMiltonKeynesBedsNorthants/
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Editors notes:
To speak with Katy, contact Kelly Ayres at Rev PR on 07895 876745 or email kelly@revpr.co.uk
Images available – Multiple photos and videos of Caleb Hugh, including him in the paddling pool, an underwater photo, a photo of the Hugh family and a video of Caleb in the paddling pool.