Latest news with #DownsSyndrome
BBC News
24-06-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Ellie Goldstein makes acting debut in iconic drama Malory Towers
Trailblazing model Ellie Goldstein is stepping into the spotlight making her acting debut in the beloved BBC iPlayer series Malory Towers. Ellie joins the cast as Nancy, a spirited new arrival at the school, with her first episode available on BBC iPlayer on Monday 30 June and airing on CBBC on Tuesday 1 July. Ellie has already made history as the first model with Down's syndrome to appear on the cover of Vogue magazine. Known for her groundbreaking work in the fashion industry and high-profile campaigns, she's now bringing her talent and charisma to the screen in the television adaptation of Enid Blyton's classic novels. Now in its sixth season, Malory Towers follows the adventures of Darrell Rivers and her friends at an all-girls' boarding school in post-war Britain. The series is a nostalgic celebration of friendship, fun, and growing up - complete with midnight feasts, pranks, and heartfelt moments. Showcasing quintessentially British storytelling, Malory Towers was filmed in studio in Bristol and on location at the beautiful setting of Hartland Abbey in North Devon, as well as other picturesque locations along the Cornish coast. Ellie's character, Nancy, arrives at Malory Towers with her guardian, who is none other than the girls' previous much-feared Matron, played by Ashley McGuire, making a welcome return to the series. Nancy, who has Down's syndrome, is a passionate history enthusiast and quickly proves herself to be a formidable lacrosse goalie. Ellie Goldstein says: "I am so honoured to have been a part of the fantastic series Malory Towers. I'm beyond excited to see my episodes and share them with everyone. I absolutely love acting and feel so lucky to have worked with such a wonderful cast and crew." Anita Burgess, Executive Producer for BBC Children's, says: 'Malory Towers continues to be a cherished part of our children's programming, offering timeless stories of friendship, resilience and adventure. It's a joy to see how each new season brings fresh energy while staying true to the spirit of Enid Blyton's beloved books.' Series 6 also welcomes newcomer Celeste (Ciara Prioux), alongside familiar faces Darrell Rivers (Ella Bright), Gwendoline Mary Lacey (Danya Griver), Sally Hope (Sienna Arif-Knights), Alicia Johns (Zoey Siewert), Mary-Lou (Imogen Lamb), Irene (Natasha Raphael), Jean (Beth Bradfield), Bill (Amelie Green), Felicity (April V Woods), June (Edesiri Paula Okpenerho), Susan (Ava Azizi), Clarissa (Amy Roerig) and Josephine (Emily Costtrici. Also reprising their roles are Ron Gilson (Jude Harper-Wrobel), Mr Parker (Jason Callender), Mam'Zelle Rougier (Geneviève Beaudet), Matron Maher (Ashley McGuire), Matron Shipley (Amanda Lawrence) and Headteacher Miss Grayling (Jennifer Wigmore). Malory Towers has been adapted for television by Rachel Flowerday and Sasha Hails. Episode 8, in which Ellie first appears, is written by Billie Collins. Malory Towers is produced by David Collier, and executive produced by Jo Sargent and Yvonne Sellins for King Bert Productions. It is produced in association with BYUtv and WildBrain, who are also global distributor of the series. Malory Towers was commissioned by Sarah Muller, Senior Head of BBC Children's Commissioning 7+ and the series is executive produced by Anita Burgess for the BBC. Malory Towers is now streaming on BBC iPlayer, with new episodes released every Monday. You can also catch new episodes on CBBC every Monday and Tuesday at 6pm. Watch Malory Towers on BBC iPlayer and add to your Watchlist HH Follow for more
BBC News
24-06-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Model with Down's syndrome 'beyond excited' to join Malory Towers
A woman who made history as the first model with Down's syndrome to feature on the front cover of Vogue said she was honoured to be making her acting Goldstein, from Essex, plays Nancy in the new series of Malory Towers on said the 23-year old would never be able to walk or talk when she was born."I am so honoured to have been a part of this fantastic series. I'm beyond excited to see my episodes and share them with everyone," she said. Now in its sixth season, Malory Towers follows the adventures of a group of girls at a boarding school in post-war Britain."I was nervous to go on set but when I saw the school house, it wasn't a dream, it was really true and I loved filming every scene at Malory Towers in school house," she said."Down's syndrome means I've got an extra chromosome - lucky me. Diversity should be out there and people should not be hidden in boxes. They need to be seen." Patricia Hidalgo, director Children and Education at the BBC said it had "long been a leader in championing diversity and representation, both on screen and behind the scenes". "When children see themselves and their peers represented, it fosters empathy, belonging and a deeper understanding of others," she said. The first episode featuring Ellie, which is episode eight in the series, is available on BBC iPlayer on 30 June and airs on CBBC on 1 July. Follow Essex news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
Daily Mail
23-06-2025
- Politics
- Daily Mail
ROSA MONCKTON: Why I'll fight in the Lords against this breathtakingly cruel and ignorant assisted suicide Bill
Last week in the House of Commons we saw two measures passed: the first licensing women to abort at up to full term, the second enabling the state to participate in, and even encourage, suicide for the terminally ill. There is a terrible symmetry here, and a bleak message – that life at its beginning, and at its end, is worthless. As the mother of an adult with a learning disability I am petrified by the lack of protection for vulnerable people in the assisted suicide Bill. You spend much of your life as a parent of a disabled child fighting for the necessary support, for the right school, the therapists, a specialist college. Every time you think you can take a breath and relax, the next milestone and hurdle awaits. You worry endlessly. The biggest concern for every parent is what will happen when we are dead. Who will look after our 'child', who will understand their needs, care for them in the right way and facilitate their way through life? But now, to add to that worry, is another enormous and unspeakable question – how can we stop them being killed? I cannot believe that I am having to write these words. Yet the assisted suicide Bill makes no special provision whatsoever for this disenfranchised group. How have we got to this place, where some lives are valued more than others? Many people with a learning disability are vulnerable. My own 30-year-old daughter, Domenica, who has Down's syndrome – and loves life – is highly suggestible and would intuit what her interlocutor wanted to hear, without understanding what she would be agreeing to. Yet in law she has what is called 'capacity'. The Bill is flawed on so many levels: the fact that no one on the death panel has to have any knowledge of the individual, the fact that hospices and care homes that do not want to be involved in assisted suicide will have no protection in law and the fact that their government funding could be based on participation. Where does that sit with the ethos of Dame Cicely Saunders, who founded the hospice movement? A movement based on the principle of care: 'You matter because you are you, and you matter to the end of your life. We will do all we can not only to help you die peacefully, but also to live until you die.' She also said: 'Suffering is only intolerable when nobody cares.' People who work in hospices do care, and the hospices that I have visited and am involved with are wonderful, positive and life-affirming places. Those who work in these hospices who do not approve of assisted suicide – which is almost all of them – will probably leave the palliative care profession. And where does that leave us? With people who want to end the lives of others, not care to the end. All legislators – of which I am one, in the House of Lords – should be considering the weakest and most vulnerable when making momentous, and in this case, literal, life and death decisions. The Bill as it stands has no special protection for people like my daughter. This is something that rightly troubles the Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, too. Explaining his decision to vote against the Bill in a Facebook post aimed at his constituents, he said: 'I can't get past the concerns expressed by the Royal College of Psychiatrists, the Royal College of Physicians, the Association for Palliative Medicine and a wide range of charities representing under-privileged groups in our society about the risks that come with this Bill.' Among the many amendments rejected by the committee set up by the sponsor of the bill, Kim Leadbeater MP, were safeguards to protect people with Down's syndrome – an amendment which should have included all people with a learning disability or autism. The committee, of which the great majority were backers of the Bill, rejected by 13 to eight to exclude special support for those with Down's syndrome when discussing assisted suicide. How could this possibly be considered acceptable? Was there not one of those 13 with experience of what it is to have a learning disability; no understanding of how much specialised knowledge and interpretation is needed? If anyone mentions death or dying to my daughter, she immediately becomes acutely anxious and troubled. The deaths we have had in our family have traumatised her. The thought of a stranger telling her that to kill herself would be an option if she has a terminal illness is so frightening and chilling that it makes me cry, and the fact this could all happen without any of her family being informed – as the Bill enables – is breathtakingly cruel and ignorant. But above all else it makes me angry. Angry at the lack of rigour in this bill. Angry at the lack of understanding of people with learning disabilities. Angry at the implicit assumption that their lives are not worth the same as the rest of the population. We saw it during the Covid pandemic, when the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), which provides guidance to the NHS and the social care sector, divided the population into different categories and advised how each should be treated. Category 7 was defined as 'completely dependent for personal care, from whatever cause, physical or cognitive. Even so, they seem stable and at no risk of dying'. That would have covered my daughter. Categories 7 to 9 were to be denied lifesaving treatment. Legislators have a duty to be rigorous and fair. You cannot make laws because Dame Esther Rantzen lobbied the Prime Minister, or because someone's granny had an avoidably terrible death. This should never have been a Private Member's Bill. It has not had the scrutiny or the parliamentary time necessary for such a momentous change in the way we live and die. It is a law for the strong and determined against the weak and the vulnerable. All of us in Parliament should know which of those needs the most protection.
BBC News
22-06-2025
- Health
- BBC News
Swansea harness aid helps boy with Down syndrome to skateboard
A 12-year-old boy has trialled a world-first skatepark aid that will allow him to participate in the sport without the help of his who has Down's syndrome, used a harness system at Exist Skatepark in Swansea because he wanted to skateboard with his was created by the Cerebra Innovation Centre which designs and builds bespoke products to help disabled children take part in Leonard, who owns the skatepark, said she hoped the technology will make the sport more inclusive. Ollie's mum, Jilly, said the experience was "much more inclusive" than when he had tried other sports in the past."He has to have specialist equipment for that whereas, if he's skateboarding, he can join in with other children," she said she was "quite surprised" it had not been done before as there are plenty of children that need a "bit of extra support" when skateboarding."Not just children with disabilities either," she consists of a harness which helps Ollie keep his balance on a standard skateboard, with handles he can hold on the family is from Leicester which means trips to the Swansea skatepark will be rare due to the distance. They live opposite another skate park and after seeing other teenagers doing it, Ollie "really wanted to have a go"."He had a good time but I couldn't let go with him because he was too scared to do it," Jilly said the aid will help him to build up confidence to do it "without an adult holding him."Jilly would "definitely" like to see the equipment being implemented in other parts of the UK and, preferably, a bit closer to home."It would be beneficial to a lot of children across the country so if it could be expanded that would be great." Dr Ross Head, Cerebra Innovation Centre Lead, said the idea stemmed from seeing a video of Ollie skating in park."He didn't have very good balance so his mum was holding him up," he team developed a skateboard with handles which was "great", but Dr Head wanted to go a step further, as they attempted to tackle the "social stigma" of using equipment that is decided to create a brand new skatepark adaptation so Ollie would be able to use a harness system. "Exist Skatepark were over the moon to help," he new system has allowed Ollie to "have the same skateboard as everybody else" which was "really important for us," according to Dr charity Cerebra are set to unveil the new system for public use at Exist Skatepark on Sunday. Dr Head said Ollie has shown that it "definitely works" but there is "much more we can do"."I think we've just scratched the surface," he said."There's a huge amount we can do for disabled skateboarders.""It would work for anybody just learning to skate. It's going to be absolutely amazing and it could take around 30 people a day."The current framework is suitable for people that are new to skating, but Dr Head said he hoped it will be able to be used by more experienced skaters in the future. The Exist Skatepark has been owned by Kate Leonard and her partner since met Dr Head in December last year when he came to her with a proposition to feature the harness in her found it "really emotional" to see Ollie in the skate park and admitted she "cried a few times"."We do an awful lot of things in the community but this had such a new dimension to what we can offer," she said seeing Ollie's face was a "delight" adding that it "felt like a moment".Kate said that skateboarding has to "move forward" and the way to do that is to allow "everyone to do it.""I think it's massive for Wales," she said."There are only four indoor skate parks in Wales, which is crazy, but if you start making all of those accessible to everyone, then that creates a boom, you know."
BBC News
20-06-2025
- General
- BBC News
Special educational needs school leavers working as classroom assistants
Classroom assistants Dan McKee and Savanna Presho are both aged 20 and have Down's with 22-year-old Ben McCreight, who has a learning disability, they are working hard to make a positive difference to pupils at two primary schools in Bangor, County and Ben work as classroom assistants in Clandeboye Primary School, while Savanna works in Bloomfield Primary principal of Bloomfield PS, Rebecca Bishop, told BBC News NI that Savanna "brings out the best in our pupils." BBC News NI visited the school to see her at work in the school's polytunnel, helping the pupils learn about how to grow flowers, plants and also works with pupils in the school's nurture unit and P1, supporting the teacher."She's fitted in here like she's part of the furniture," Ms Bishop told BBC News NI."Savanna comes in here and just enjoys being part of our everyday."She brings that natural empathy which all children have within them, and that willingness to engage and to work with new people."It's nice for them to see somebody different coming into school and have that opportunity to shine with their own personalities." Just over a third of people with disabilities in Northern Ireland are in work, compared with more than half in the rest of the to the Department for the Economy (DfE), adults with disabilities in Northern Ireland are twice as likely to be unemployed as those without a disability. Making a difference At Clandeboye Primary School, principal Julie Thomas says Dan and Ben working in the school every Monday had made a difference to said he loved the children and staff in the school and looked forward to work every Monday."We help the kids doing PE and after that doing some work," he Thomas added: "Dan and Ben have been working with P1 and in our nurture room, The Nest, to help support the children with their practical activities and their social activities and also their time outside in the playground."Within a very short time, we've seen their confidence grow."They have grown in how they're seen within the building."They've made really good relationships with the staff as well as the children and we just see them as part of our staff now in Clandeboye Primary School." At Clandeboye, Dan and Ben were role models, Ms Thomas said."With us working now fully with children who have additional needs, I think it's important for the families of those children to see that there are other experiences once the children go beyond school life themselves and on into adulthood," she said. SEN support Parents and school principals have highlighted how support for young people with special educational needs (SEN) ends when they leave have campaigned for to change that and introduce statutory support until the age of is a situation that Robert McGowan runs Strides Day Opportunity Service in Bangor, which provides work experience and other classes for young adults who have come through special education. Mr McGowan arranged Dan, Ben and Savanna's placements as classroom assistants with the two primary schools."Dan started in special education as a boy of maybe five or six, so he's had 13 or 14 years in special education," he said."Then the provision stops. Once they reach the adult sector, there seems to be a gap there."All that effort, all that consistency, all that time that's been spent that can ease off and almost dry up."Mr McGowan also said it was important to provide "meaningful" work experience for young adults with disabilities.
