Ieuan Swithin from Cwmbran had a reputation for being violent towards his teachers, lashing out at his classmates and being generally aggressive. He was eventually suspended from school when he was just five years old.
If he had not been sent to the nurture group his mother Sharon is convinced he would now be confined at home to learn.
“I started trying to get help for him when he was 18 months old but he just got worse as he went into nursery then infants,” she said.
“I was so ashamed when I had to go and collect him from school because he had been aggressive or had hit another child. I was at my wits end with him and didn’t know where to turn.”
After he was suspended staff at the nurture group agreed to take him on, and 12 months later Ieuan’s behaviour is now good enough for him to attend his old mainstream school once a week.
“It’s made a huge difference,” said Sharon. “We can now talk to each other and reason with him. He has developed a real bond with the teachers at the group and knows what the boundaries are. He knows how to make friends and to be nice to other people.
“We now believe Ieuan has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and the group has helped us to get the specialist support for him that he needs.”
