Disability is no hurdle to achievement – Alice’s Story!

By Charlotte Mellor and mummy Susannah

We at the VICTA Parent Portal want to use the website as a positive publishing platform to celebrate achievements. If you are exceptionally proud of your child for something amazing they have achieved, then the VICTA Parent Portal wants to help you shout it from the roof tops!

After an overwhelming response from proud parents who have sent in lots of great stories about all the awesome things their children have achieved, we have decided to feature Alice’s story this month.

Sixteen year old Alice from Kent recently won the ‘Triumph in the Face of Adversity’ Award at the Kent Awards 2019. The children’s awards recognise the efforts and achievements of courageous children, their families and the charities that support them.

“Despite the challenges she faces she always thinks of others, say her family, having organised collections and gifts for people in the community she feels are more in need, including residents of a retirement home and Street Angels organisation.”

Alice has sat all her GCSEs and is currently attending The Royal College for the Blind, the UK’s leading Further Education College for those aged 16 plus with visual impairment.

All in all, Alice received a massive 12 nominations from people unbeknown to Alice or her family. The board then sat down to make the decisions about who were the most deserving winners.

Alice delivered a talk to her hearing-impaired unit about the importance of helping others.  Added to that, she contacted the parents of the other children in her unit and organised a collection of life necessities, and delivered them to homeless people, the elderly and donated to Street Angels to assist them with their good work.

Soon after she was diagnosed, not letting it stand in her way, she did a Milk Top collection are for SEN children. This helped them get books and stamps for Retina UK and orchestrated a big collection for the Salvation Army to help people in need.

Alice achieved all this whilst sitting her GCSEs. She achieved 1 GCSE in Art but has completed her resit qualifications at RNC.  Whilst at RNC, Alice is in the process of organising makeup and beauty sessions to assist the other girls in the school with how to develop self-beauty techniques.

Alice has done some awareness building on local television about Ushers Syndrome and mental health. As a result, Alice now has access to a pair of Oxsight glasses which will be particularly helpful with her studies at college.

Alice has unfortunately battled severe mental health issues but has found the courage to face it head on.  Currently studying Audio Media, she will hopefully start singing lessons in January of 2020. She aspires to become a personal trainer, so is studying that alongside Braille at RNC.

“Our saying in there is a can in a can’t, nothing is impossible. She did struggle but found courage and strength to get through it…. Truly inspirational”- Susannah (mum)

If you would like your child to feature in the achievements themed blogs, please do get in touch, we would love to hear from you!

Read our other achievement blog: By Charlotte Mellor: Scarlett – My Greatest Achievement