I decided on Conductive Education because it seemed like the natural choice. I first got work experience at the Milestone School, a special school in Gloucester. I did three weeks in the primary group and I was only fifteen at the time. While I was there I worked with two conductors and I saw Conductive Education working. It made sense. I saw a girl walk for the first time. She really came on in the space of a week. I also had some experience of disability as I used to help out with a boy with muscular dystrophy and I’d always wanted to be a teacher too…so it seemed an easy decision.

The course itself was very challenging but the most enjoyable thing was being in the groups at NICE. The hands-on work made you more confident. You are totally prepared for a job when you leave. As for being the only boy (and the first boy to take the course in the UK) – that was fine! In fact, I think more males should be encouraged. It’s definitely a benefit for the children to have male as well as female conductors.

Conductive Education is different because it sees the child in a different light. It looks at what can be achieved but it doesn’t just look at maintaining it, but really at developing it. The children really come out of themselves. They’re no longer just a child with cerebral palsy – they turn into a child with this great big personality. And because it’s a different approach that has a different expectation of them, it gives them a different expectation of their life – a very positive one.

I worked in the school group at NICE for a year following my graduation and that really cemented everything I had learned during my course. Now, I work as an Outreach Conductor for Megan Baker House, a Conductive Education centre in Gloucestershire. I’ve been lucky as I’ve been able to get involved in developing new projects. I spend part of my time teaching alongside groups here and part of my time delivering Conductive Education in different settings, such as early years groups, mainstream schools and a special school. It doesn’t always run smoothly, there are lots of issues to contend with and we are working flat out, but I really enjoy it. When you see the children progress and then when you see them using Conductive Education in spontaneous situations, not just in the group, that’s when you know you have made a real difference to their lives – And that’s the most satisfying thing about my job.