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Fourteen-year-old John has moderate learning difficulties which cause him problems in making himself understood and understanding what other people are saying. He attends a mainstream school in Manchester and copes well with the work. What he doesn't cope with so well is the bullying.

He explains: "It started at primary school nine years ago and has gone on ever since. I've had all sorts of things happen to me, I've even been set on fire. I've told teachers about it but they are always busy and say come back later. Then when I go back they say it's too late. Only one teacher has helped me, he's spoken to the bullies but no one else has done anything.


"I'd like the bullies to be kicked out of school. I don't know why they bully me, I don't know if it's because of my disabilities but I've never told the other kids at school about my disabilities. Probably they just bully me because they can.

"I've started harming myself because of the bullying and the fact that I'm not being taken seriously. I feel that if I do that I am sorting it out in my own way. I've tried not to let it get in the way of my learning but it's hard."

Away from his problems at school, John is happy with the health care he receives and has recently started seeing a speech therapist who he says is very good, although he doesn't know why he has had to wait so long to get help with his speech problems. He is also getting help from doctors and a psychiatrist for his self-harming and is confident that with their support he will be able to stop.

John gets a lot of support from his family. His parents are divorced and he lives with his mum but his dad plays an active role in his life. "When my dad lived at home he used to drink a lot and that used to affect me, he would smash doors and windows at home, but it is better now, he doesn't drink so much. I still see a lot of my dad, it doesn't really feel like my mum and dad are divorced," he explains.

John, a keen song-writer and Manchester City fan, is one of the regular members of a weekly activity group for young people with learning difficulties in Manchester. The group receives funding from various charities and statutory sources and is largely staffed by volunteers. Young people are able to take part in drama workshops, arts and crafts, music and writing projects. Day trips are organised but can be problematic because transport costs tend to be so high.

Thirteen-year-old Karen has Down's syndrome but that doesn't stop her from leading an active social life. She loves meeting new people, learning their names and what they do and introducing them to other people.

She says: "I like coming to the group and talking to the volunteers. I'm a big girl now and I can do lots of things on my own."

Karen enjoys going for respite care on a regular basis, which gives both her and her family a break. The respite carer who looks after her plays an important role in her life. Karen says: "I stay the night there and I like it. She has a son who is my friend and a cat I can play with. And she came to see me when I was in a play."


Karen attends a school for children with special needs and enjoys swimming and drama. She says the teachers are very good and help her with her school work if she gets stuck. When Karen is in a new or strange environment she often gets very anxious and scared. A health worker has recently started coming into school to help her with this and Karen likes working with her on a one-to-one basis.

Paul, aged 14, is a keen Manchester United fan and enjoys bowling, drama and meeting friends. His learning difficulties are compounded by housing problems. He has a large family and says it is overcrowded at home and he doesn't like sharing a bedroom with several other members of his family. "I don't like bedtime, it is difficult and it makes me upset."

He says he finds his special school boring, he finds writing hard and he sometimes gets into trouble. He gets worried when he can't do things but says one particular teacher at school helps him.

Paul sees a doctor regularly but has negative feelings about health professionals. He says: "Doctors wind me up, the things they say, how they are."

Sixteen-year-old Caroline enjoys singing and drawing with her friends at the activity group. She has learning difficulties, hearing problems and diabetes. She says: "It means I find some things hard, like writing and maths. It makes me feel upset when I can't do things. My mum helps me but I'd like the teachers to help me more."

She sees doctors regularly for treatment for her hearing problems and for managing her diabetes. She has regular injections and takes tablets to control her blood sugar levels. She admits it is difficult not eating chocolate or having fizzy drinks like other young people but she now manages her diabetes well.

Sukhi, aged 16, who has learning difficulties and suffers from epilepsy, enjoys meeting other young people at the group and appearing in music videos they produce. Her epileptic seizures have only started recently and have so far all happened at school.

She says: "I'll be doing something or talking to a teacher and then something happens to me and I have to go to the hospital. The teachers help me, they are good to me when it happens but I have missed some school. The doctors and nurses at hospital give me things to make me stop having the fits but sometimes they don't explain what is happening."

Names in this article have been changed to protect identities.