Health of up to 80% of children with diabetes at risk at schools in North West

INEQUALITIES in support for children with diabetes in the North West’s primary schools could be putting the health of up to 80% (an estimated 850 children) of the region’s 5 to 11 year olds with the condition at risk, according to a report published today by leading health charity Diabetes UK. Making all Children Matter reveals that only 20% of primary schools where there are children with diabetes have a medications policy and administer vital insulin. This often means that parents have to go in every day to give the life-saving injections or children are forced to change their injection times regardless of what’s best for their health.

Parents have also come forward to tell Diabetes UK about times their children have been made to eat lunch alone, inject insulin in school toilets and, in an extreme case, wait outside the gates until a nurse arrives. This lack of knowledge and necessary systems for supporting children with diabetes leaves them isolated as they struggle to manage their condition alone, having a directly damaging effect on their quality of life and education as well as health.

Helen Pattie, Regional Manager of Diabetes UK North West, says:- “It is unacceptable for medication regimes to be changed to fit around school hours. Children must have the most appropriate treatment for their diabetes and be properly supported in managing their condition. Where parents have to step in to give insulin injections during school hours, we hear all too often that they are unable to work because they have to go into school every day – this is unacceptable and can put heart-breaking strain on families both financially and emotionally.”

Diabetes is a serious condition that, if not managed effectively, can lead to long-term complications such as heart disease, stroke, blindness, kidney failure and amputation. Short-term complications of the condition include hypoglycaemic episodes, known as ‘hypos’, which can lead to unconsciousness and hospitalisation if left untreated. However, effective diabetes management from the time of diagnosis can reduce the risk of these complications. This is why giving children the right support to control their condition from an early age is vital to protect their short- and long-term health.

Diabetes UK is calling for Government guidance and legislation to recognise children with diabetes as a vulnerable group. The charity says the Education and Inspection Act 2006 needs to be strengthened to explicitly include the well-being of children with long-term conditions. It also wants the forthcoming Child Health Strategy to spell out how the Government will ensure implementation of relevant policy amongst schools, local authorities and PCTs; and lastly for Ofsted to routinely inspect whether schools have clear medications policies and procedures to support children with diabetes.  Government must apply top-down pressure to ensure effective implementation of existing legislation - focussing on the role of Ofsted inspections and monitoring - to tackle the terrifying situation that some children with diabetes and their families find themselves in.

Pattie concludes:- “The plight faced by some children with diabetes at school in the North West shows fundamental failings in public policy in bringing together health and education at a national and local level. Successfully supporting children with diabetes requires a partnership between schools, local authorities and primary care trusts. We currently have a postcode lottery in this regard, there are pockets of good practice, but this must spread throughout the country to avoid children’s health, quality of life and education being irreparably damaged.”

To mark World Diabetes Day, Diabetes UK released Making all Children Matter, a report that looks at the current provision of support for children with diabetes in schools in England and what needs to be done to ensure they get the same opportunities as every other child. A copy of the report can be downloaded.

Case study:-  Danielle Twamley, 15, from Eccles in Manchester... Danielle has had Type 1 diabetes since she was 10. Her Mum Julie explains:- “Danielle has experienced a number of unnecessary and worrying incidents at her secondary school. On one occasion I was forced to collect her and rush her to A&E due to a complication of her diabetes that had developed because a teacher had refused to listen to Danielle’s pleas that she was feeling unwell, claiming she was ‘pulling the wool over her eyes’. Danielle subsequently had to spend 24 hours in a High Dependency Unit in recovery.”

Top firms compete for £50m Liverpool Central Library

4 top companies are competing for the contract to create a new world-class Central Library in Liverpool.  The city council launched a Europe-wide search earlier this year for a blue chip development partner for the £50 million PFI project.

The building on William Brown Street has gradually fallen into disrepair over many decades and suffers from problems such as damp and a leaking roof. 

Under the scheme, the Grade 2 listed parts of the building which were built in the 1850s including the façade and stunning Picton Reading Room will be restored to their former glory.  The sections, built in the 1950s and 1970s, following World War 2 bomb damage will be demolished and rebuilt to make the most of the available space.

The 4 bidders are:-

• Inspire Partnership – Babcock and Brown and Shepherd Construction Ltd

• Kajima Partnerships Ltd and Carillion plc

• Information Resources – Kier Project Investment and Land Securities Trillium

• Community Solutions – Morgan Sindall Investments Ltd and HOCHTIEF PPP Solutions (UK)

The new look library will include a new home for the Liverpool Record Office, titled Liverpool Memories. It will house some of the city’s most historic treasures from the last 800 years - such as the original 1207 charter - in purpose built secure storage.

Council leader Warren Bradley said:- “This is the biggest ever single investment in the city’s library service.  It will enable us to upgrade and restore the historic parts of the building, creating an absolutely 1st-class 21st century facility in the heart of the city’s cultural quarter.  This project will transform Central Library into a place where reading and learning is exciting and stimulating, and provide a new home for books - which will remain at the heart of the service.”

There will also be state-of-the-art IT facilities which will allow young people to download music and games onto MP3 and MP4 players with wi-fi, and access to computers.  Visitors will enter the building through a new look entrance, there will be improved disabled access and a coffee bar for people to relax.

Joyce Little, Head of Liverpool’s Libraries and Information Service, said:- “Parts of the current building are magnificent, but the piecemeal development over the last century means it is simply not fit for purpose any more and it is slowly deteriorating.  I am delighted with the quality of the four bids, and we are now in a position to move forward with the scheme and look closely at what each is proposing.”

Over the next 6 months, the bidders will make presentations about their proposals and the city council will carry out a full and detailed evaluation before the winner is chosen next summer.

Work is expected to start on the scheme in 2010, with the new look library reopening in 2012.