How Lola’s little steps made a big difference
DISABLED TODDLER TAKES ON GRUELLING CHALLENGE TO HELP RAISE MORE THAN £2,000 FOR ‘LIFELINE’ CHARITY
A toddler with cerebral palsy has completed a gruelling feat of endurance for a disability charity.
Two-year-old Lola James completed a 64-step challenge on her birthday to help raise more than £2,000 for the Steps Conductive Education Centre, in Shepshed.
For any two-year-old, 64 steps is a workout. But Lola has quadriplegic cerebral palsy which affects all of her limbs, meaning she cannot yet crawl, sit, stand or walk independently. She completed the challenge to mark her second birthday
The look of determination on her face as she marched towards her goal could clearly be seen in pictures shared by her mum and dad, Beth and Greg.
Lola’s achievement was greeted with a round of applause and hugs from her parents and staff at the Steps centre.
The toddler regularly attends the centre, in Loughborough Road, where she receives help with her walking and motor skills, alongside other children with conditions such as cerebral palsy and Down’s syndrome.
Her mum described the charity as a lifeline for her daughter and the family.
“We’ve been going to Steps for around a year now, since Lola was a little over one,” said Beth. “Steps takes a holistic look at the child and helps them with all aspects of their development.
“A lot of it’s physical, but they also work on cognitive skills, social skills, life skills, that kind of thing. They work with all sorts of children who have neurological disorders.”
Lola’s fund-raising efforts were boosted with a donation from Lubrizol, a science company based in Derbyshire where Greg works as a videographer.
Between them, they handed over more than £2,000 to Steps, which relies on donations and costs £220,000 a year to run.
“They’re absolutely brilliant,” said Beth. “It has been very challenging for us having a child with such a severe disability and there isn’t that much support through the NHS, just because of resources, so Steps has been a real lifeline for us, as it is for many other families in the area.
“The centre in Shepshed is great, it has loads of equipment, loads of space, loads of toys.
“One of the things you don’t realise until you have a disabled child is that special needs toys are so expensive. We can’t afford to have them at home, but Lola can go and play with them at Steps.”
Steps describes Conductive Education as “a comprehensive system that focuses on developing and nurturing the abilities of children or adults with neurological, impaired or delayed movement problems through a structured biopsychosocial model of teaching and learning”.
Beth said Lola cannot sit or roll, but staff at Steps had been
“able to get her walking by manipulation, which is something that we could never do at home.”
There are no fees for families whose youngsters attend the centre.
“They’re completely free,” said Beth.
“They do everything based on fund-raising, which is why this donation from Lubrizol is so amazing.
“Steps has also introduced me to a community of parents who have disabled children.
“When you have a disabled child you do end up staying at home a lot. There’s not much that’s accessible for you. Getting out to baby classes where you’d normally meet other parents is just not possible a lot of the time.
“Also, it’s hard to connect with parents who don’t have a disabled child.
“It’s quite painful for me seeing other children who are developing normally, as that’s the experience we haven’t had. So it’s great being able to meet a group of parents who know exactly what we’re going through. They share so much knowledge with us.
“We found loads of other services through the parents at Steps, so it has been completely life-saving for us in so many ways.”
Lubrizol made the donation to Steps through its charities and communities committee.
Tom Grazier, of Lubrizol, said: “When Greg reached out to ask if we might support Lola’s walking challenge, we were delighted to be able to help out.
“We’re very proud to have been able to help in a small way. But mainly, congratulations to Lola on her fantastic walking achievement.”
It has been very challenging having a child with such a severe disability, so Steps has been a real lifeline
Mum Beth