How Can Cerebral Palsy Compensation Help

There is no cure for cerebral palsy and no amount of compensation will change the damage caused by the injury physically, mentally and emotionally.

Compensation does help improve quality of life and gives the injured person the best opportunities for the greatest development and experiences possible.

Compensation can also ease the day to day strain and stress and gives the reassurance that the injured person will be looked after properly all of their lives in a safe and supportive environment.

If responsibility for the cerebral palsy is admitted during the claim we will work with you immediately to put in place the changes that can only be afforded with substantial compensation.

In other cases compensation is not available until the end of the claim and so while we can work with you during the claim to ensure you have all the support to which you are entitled through the state systems and can advise you on the best ways of accessing equipment and care we have to wait until the end of the claim before we can help put in place the support compensation can bring.

Education, housing, care, health provision, and equipment will be top of the list.  You may also need help in managing millions of pounds of compensation.

If there is any doubt that the present education provision is inadequate, or if better provision is available we will work with you to explore the possibilities and if appropriate put in place and fund a change of schools.

We work with you to assess the extent to which your present home is capable of adaption and extension to meet the family needs and at the same time provide an appropriate environment to care for your injured child. In nearly every case a house move to a larger property capable of adaption and extension is the preferred option.

We will work with you to identify a suitable house, engage architects, surveyors, builders, and project managers to ensure that the move takes place as quickly and as smoothly as possible. It is part of our skill to help anticipate all the future needs and to ensure that the move and adaptations are a one and for all event that provides the best environment for the long term.

In many cases having provided 24 hour care for all of your child's life yourself it is hard to imagine another providing good quality reliable care and allowing you to become your child's parent without also being their 24 hour carer.

It is important that you look after yourself, avoid the risk of back injury though lifting, have time to rest and to look after other children and family members, and to be primarily your child's parent rather than full time carer.

Letting go of the intimate continual care requirements of a child can be a difficult process. Becoming an employer and trainer of carers can be stressful and although the long term benefits are clear the process can be challenging.

We can help you with this change in your life. We can engage a case manager to help you find, employ, train, pay, and manage either one carer or a team of carers. We can help find the right balance for you and your family between the intrusion of carers into your lives and the freedom help can bring.

We can help ensure that therapies are delivered to the full extent they are required and if there are problems with NHS provision of medical services private health care can be arranged.  

We can help you through the choices in adapted cars, wheelchairs, electronic communication equipment, hoists, and all equipment needed.

The compensation is not a windfall or a lottery win, it is the minimum amount of money, if managed and invested with care and skill, that is likely to enable the injured person to live as independent and fulfilling a life as possible without having to rely upon others charity. The compensation is usually paid in a combination of a capital lump sum and guaranteed annual payments for life.

The capital sum will be in part spent on a house move and other purchases while the annual payments are used towards the costs of care, household running costs, and the costs of replacing equipment.

With the capital payments often in the millions of pounds professional advice is necessary on how to best invest and manage the award in order to also allow funds to be available when necessary. We can help you manage the award both in helping allocate the award to appropriate expenditure and in assisting in the choice of financial managers and ways in which the award should be invested.