John is a 9-year-old autistic boy. He is non-verbal, quite isolated, finds it difficult to control his behaviour and struggles with changes. He is extremely aggressive, both towards his peers and staff members, but also towards himself. He often scratches and hits, as well as spits at his surroundings.
Dara is 5 years old and lives with her mother and older brother. She was diagnosed with Batten Disease (a rare, genetic, progressive neurodegenerative disease that occurs in mainly children) at 18 months. Dara was born healthy, but the Batten Disease has now resulted in difficulties with her ability to speak, eat, see and walk. Dara attends a special needs school.
Anna is 8 years old. She found it difficult settling into her new school. Anna lives with her mother who has to cope with mental health difficulties herself. As a result Anna’s home life is chaotic and her behaviour in school reflected this as she was often disruptive and found it difficult to listen in class. Anna also found it difficult to interact with her peers, which made it hard for her to make friends.