Epilepsy

Epilepsy is a neurological disorder which affects the brain and is marked by the tendency to have recurrent seizures.

These may be episodes of sensory disturbance, loss of consciousness, stiffness or jerky convulsions. It is usually a lifelong condition but can improve as children mature.

Epilepsy does not have any bearing on intelligence, although epilepsy may be an additional aspect of learning or physical difficulties. However, children with epilepsy can have problems with memory, processing speed, attention and concentration.

Epilepsy is usually treatable with medication. However, some epilepsy medications have side-effects that impact on learning, including hyperactivity, drowsiness, memory problems, and difficulty in concentrating.

Most children with epilepsy attend mainstream schools and do not require any additional provision, aside from special consideration or understanding. Epilepsy often accompanies other conditions, such as Cerebral Palsy and some children with severe epilepsy may attend a special school.

Choosing a mainstream school

You need to feel confident that a school can provide any medical support necessary and will make adjustments so that your child is not disadvantaged in his or her learning. Aspects you should consider are:

• Has the school trained all staff, including supply teachers and playground staff, in how to respond to a seizure, and do they clearly understand when it represents a medical emergency?
• Do you know who the staff member trained to give emergency medicine is?
• Will they ensure that your child can take part in off-site visits, after school clubs, residential trips, etc.? And how would they risk assess for these?
• If you think some activities may put your child at risk of seizures, how would they address this? For example, will they provide one-to-one support for swimming? How would they manage chemistry experiments?
• If your child has known side effects which have an impact in the classroom, such as problems with concentration or behaviour, how will they deal with this? 
• If stress is a trigger for a child, how would the school support your child during exams?
• What other help can they offer during exams, for example rest breaks, or allowing pupils to take exams at a different time if seizures typically occur at a particular part of the day?
• What help will they give your child to contend with learning lost during absence seizures? 
• If there are physical aspects to the classroom which could trigger seizures, will the school make adjustments?

Further information

www.youngepilepsy.org.uk

 

Most popular Good Schools Guide articles

• Special educational needs introduction

  Need help? Perhaps you suspect your child has some learning difficulty and you would like advice on what you should do. Or perhaps it is becoming clear that your child's current school is not working for him or her, and you need help to find a mainstream school which has better SEN provision, or to find a special school which will best cater for your child's area of need. Our SEN consultancy team advises on both special schools, and the mainstream schools with good SEN support, from reception through to the specialist colleges for 19+. Special Educational Needs Index

• The Good Schools Guide International

  Find top international, British, IB and American schools in over 40 countries. The Good Schools Guide International publishes impartial and forthright reviews of international schools across the world.

• Grammar schools best value added

  We examined the value-added from KS2 to GCSE for 2022 to see which state selective grammar schools added the most value to their offspring. A note of caution - the more highly selective a grammar school, the less scope there will be to add value.

• Grammar schools in the UK

  Grammar schools are state-funded, academically selective senior schools. The education a child receives at grammar school is paid for by the state unlike at private schools which provide education for a fee. There are currently around 163 located in 36 English local authorities, with around 167,000 pupils between them. Northern Ireland has a further 67 grammar schools, but there are none in Wales or Scotland. A word of caution: there are private schools that have the word 'grammar' in their name but this is purely for historical reasons. 

• Music, drama and dance at Performing Arts schools

  At specialist music, dance or performing arts schools, the arts aren't optional extras. They’re intrinsic to the school curriculum. Students are expected to fit in high level training and hours of practice alongside a full academic provision. It's a lot to ask any child to take on, but for those with exceptional performing ability this kind of education can be transformative.