MEMORY problems, irritability, temper outbursts, dependency and depression are among the difficulties suffered by Paul Owen of Penketh since he sustained severe head injuries in a road accident at the age of nine.

Paul's mother Phyllis has struggled for years to look after him with little support and has finally helped to set up two branches of the Children's Head Injury Trust.

One is the Warrington branch, the other is the North West branch, and they both meet at the Carers' Centre at Garven Place.

Paul is now 16. Phyllis had to give up her job to look after him for 18 months after the accident. He was on a life support machine and then in hospital twice a year - at one point for three months - until last year.

Paul was a keen sportsman and gymnast before his accident. "The worst problem is his memory. You tell him things and he forgets," said Phyllis.

"He doesn't know where he puts things. He has no concept of time. Emotionally, he is like a child in some respects. He cannot go to Warrington on his own. He goes with friends and they are very good with him."

She had to go back to work because she was short of money and looking after Paul while working proved a great strain. She tried to get help from various sources. Social Services did some adaptations to her house.

"Paul was not getting on well at school. They didn't recognise his problems. They just thought he was slow. You would not think think there was anything wrong with Paul unless you were with him 24 hours. I was angry and frustrated," she said.

"I have fought for the past five years to get him help with learning disabilities. He has no concentration skills," said Phyllis. Now, Paul is being given support from a team, including an education psychologist, at Warrington Collegiate Institute where he is taking art. He goes to and from college by taxi.

He cannot go out on his own. Phyllis has no idea what the future will hold for him but she is pleased that he is at the Collegiate.

It was after she contacted Headway, a charity for adults with head injuries, that Phyllis was put in touch with the Children's Head Injury Trust.

As their nearest branch was in Oxford, Phyllis was prompted to get firstly the North West branch off the ground, and after that, the Warrington branch.

The Trust puts people in touch with physiotherapists, social workers, education psychologists, clinical psychologists and facilities for rehabilitation.

They also hold fund raising for social events for parents and children.

Phyllis has recently organised a charity concert, with a couple of helpers, which raised £188 for the North West branch.

"We would like a rehabilitation centre in Warrington," she said.

Children with severe head injuries suffer memory problems, lack of insight, poor concentration, slowed responses, poor planning and problem solving, lack of initiative, inflexibility, impulsivity, irritability and temper outbursts, excessive talking, socially inappropriate behaviour, self centreness, dependency, emotional liability and depression.

Said Phyllis : "I don't want other people to go through the traumas I have been through.

"These include anger, frustration and no financial help. I have only just received a disabled living allowance after all this time," she said.

Parents of children with head injuries can get information from the Children's Head Injury Trust on 0800 389 3974

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