Mother fears for disabled son's life in "dangerous" council flat (From Times Series)
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Mother fears for disabled son's life in "dangerous" council flat
5:30pm Wednesday 8th February 2012 in News
Ms O'Boyle with Elis on the balcony of their flat
A young mother fears for her disabled son’s life because Barnet Council has failed to move her to a safer flat.
Katie O’Boyle, 25, is a full time carer for six-year-old Elis who is deaf and has communication difficulties.
Ms O’Boyle and her family have been living in a fifth floor flat in Marsh Drive, West Hendon, provided by Barnet Homes, for four years.
However, Ms O’Boyle fears that Elis will fall off the flat’s balcony which he climbs on to talk to friends on the ground below.
Ms O’Boyle said: “I’m afraid that he will fall off the balcony and be killed. The council are not taking his disability into account.
“They are treating me like a normal person with normal needs and that is just not the case.”
The worried mother says that this balcony would be dangerous with any child but that it is particularly hazardous with Elis because he cannot hear if she tells him to come down.
Ms O’Boyle said: “I’m not asking for big things, I’m just asking for safety for my child.
“If Elis climbs on the balcony when I am carrying shopping, or my other child, then I cannot get to him quickly enough to stop him.
“Ordinarily I would call him and tell him to come down but he can only understand me if I am directly in front of him so that he can lip read.”
She has been contacting the council for about two years expressing her concerns.
An occupational therapist came to assess the situation in September but she left her job before writing a report.
A council spokesman said: “The council is not able to comment on individual cases but will always thoroughly consider a resident’s housing needs before deciding whether to re-house someone at a time of significant demand for social housing.
“This would include assessments by housing needs officers and where appropriate the council’s medical assessment team.
“The council will also carefully investigate any safety concerns residents raise about their property.”
Comments(16)
Mr unreasonable and always looking for fault
says...
5:44pm Wed 8 Feb 12
juliaoak
says...
7:09pm Wed 8 Feb 12
To speak to anyone who is deaf you need to be infront of them so that they can see your lips move and facial expression so they know you are talking to them. Hearing aids amplify all sounds not just that of the person speaking.
If a child who is deaf is hanging over a balcony to communicate to friends, then the only way to speak to them is to be facing them.
Obviously on a 5th floor balcony this would mean floating on air on the other side of the balcony!!!
Deafness is an invisible disabilty that is not fully understood by many people, It is easy to understand when a wheelchair is involved, but a child in a wheelchair would actually be safer on a 5th floor balcony than a deaf child.
At 6 years of age being deaf is not easy, they want to do all the things that other 6years old do but cannot hear the warnings of a caring parent because they are deaf.
It is not so easy to disclipline a child who cannot hear what you are saying and who can only be communicated with face to face. If you can't see the child, even in the home, they do not know you are talking to them let alone warning them of danger or disciplining them.
As a teacher of special needs children I can understand why this story is being taken seriously
harvey_uk
says...
8:08pm Wed 8 Feb 12
Neiltheboss
says...
8:17pm Wed 8 Feb 12
The flat is safe enough - and yes i do understand that to communicate with someone with hearing impairments it's difficult and you have to be in a certain place, - but surely you can find a way of communicating the first time a toddler does this, that they must never do that again. Can't believe the arrogance of some people suggesting it's Barnet council's responsibility - or newspaper for reporting it
juliaoak
says...
9:08pm Wed 8 Feb 12
accomadation to all tennants, the same as any social/landlord in return they recieve rent, It is not clear from the article if this is via benefits or not so free accomodation has nothing to do with the discussion.
Not all deaf children are diagnosed with their problem from birth even tho' they may be deaf from birth. This delays their development and you can not 'tell' them anything because they can't hear and cannot lipread from birth-
No deaf child can lip read from birth. They can not hear advice, words of love and encouragement, and do not respond either- It takes a long time for a parent to hear or see signed -'I love you mum'
When deafness is eventually diagnosed then remedial action can be taken but this takes time, longer than it takes for a hearing person to learn the lessons of life. In the mean time a young child is far more at risk in everyday activities undertaken with an adult, from out walking, going to the swings, playing in the playground at school, understanding cold, hot, very hot.
Instead of using hearing to learn about the world, seeing feeling and doing are there ways to explore. Until they see something happen all the 'telling' 'encouraging', 'explaining' in the world will not inform or stop them until means of communication have caught up with the other stages of development.
Its not so much running before you can walk, but running before you can hear and talk.
Neiltheboss
says...
9:45pm Wed 8 Feb 12
The flat is safe enough. you have to be a responsible parent. Otherwise you'd have to argue that no child should live in a block of flats.
juliaoak
says...
10:18pm Wed 8 Feb 12
A deaf child can not hear you when you say stop when they are walking/running away from you.
Of course when you say 'stop' and then catch them up you can use non-veral communication, but a deaf child does not hear that initial command.
As all children are inquisative, they want to see what is beyond. The child is taller and older than a toddler- 6 years the article says, slightly different than tapping the hands of a toddler.
I guess a toddler would be carried or in a pushchair a six year old is a lot heavier! and at a different height in relation to the balconies in the photograph.
However, I guess you know they are safe?
Neiltheboss
says...
10:27pm Wed 8 Feb 12
juliaoak
says...
10:47pm Wed 8 Feb 12
I guess you must know the child as I cant find the bit where it said they lived there when the child was a toddler.
My two year olds were in a pushchair or on reins when toddling so different problem. Bit difficult with a 6 year old!
I wonder how she manages bringing shopping and children to the 5th floor, better of if she was an octopus then she could keep hold of everything and be a more careful parent.
I notice he is not only deaf but also has communicaton difficulties, double whammy!!
juliaoak
says...
10:53pm Wed 8 Feb 12
Neiltheboss
says...
5:57am Thu 9 Feb 12
Parents responsibility to teach and control children. How on earth do you think parents manage with shopping and children? They do. Child is 6 years old - can be taught to carry a bag properly up stairs without going near danger. This argument doesn't wash. If this child is in danger, so are all the thousands of youngsters living in tower blocks in the country. Are they all in the newspapers? Shame on the Times for such a waste of a news item
harvey_uk
says...
11:31am Thu 9 Feb 12
juliaoak
says...
6:18pm Thu 9 Feb 12
Perhaps as we do not know the two children and there is no mention of the other child doing a similar thing and has obviously learnt of the danger; it can be presumed that because of this 6 year olds disabilty this environment is not safe for him.
Surely if she had said that both of my children do this then we could imagine that no effort had been taken to discipline the children. The article is only reporting on the unsutability of the environment for the 6 year old.
I can only comment on this in relation to my experience of working with special needs children who have deafness as a disability. I would not like to have to face the ordeal of dealing with this environment on a daily basis with any of the deaf children I have been involved with.
juliaoak
says...
6:24pm Thu 9 Feb 12
Surely if this report was available it would clarify the situation then everyody could stop speculating whether the mother has attempted to instruct the 6 year old correctly.
tamsin54
says...
8:58am Fri 10 Feb 12
Mr unreasonable and always looking for fault says...
5:43pm Wed 8 Feb 12
"However, Ms O’Boyle fears that Elis will fall off the flat’s balcony which he climbs on to talk to friends on the ground below." Hang on, how is it he can communicate to people below him on the baclony but his mother can't communicate to him that the balcony is dangerous.
Ms Ellis is obviously able to communicate with her son in one way or the other and just needs to tell him not to climb on it at all on any occasion!
Lots of children have been brought up in these flats and none fallen off.
Common sense aint common is it?!!