So far, I’ve talked quite a lot about what happens in Circle meetings.  Life, of course, has a habit of going on between Circle meetings and in this post I wanted to talk about life in between Circle meetings.

If you’ve read this blog before, you’ll know that the focus of the Circle so far has been to support Henry in his transition from school to beyond.  We’ve spent hours juggling budgets, devising a one page profile, creating a job description for personal assistants, developing a weekly plan and working out with Henry which activities he might enjoy that will allow him to follow his interests.  Finally, we had a weekly plan including: the people we need to support him, the volunteering, a social life and college.

And then, the week before it was due to start, it all fell apart.  Both volunteering placements could no longer accommodate Henry at the beginning of September; it became clear that the police check for one of the personal assistants would not come through in time; the transport for college was not in place.  None of the original plan could be delivered. In the space of a day, all the Circle’s careful planning fell apart.

I sat there, head in hands, and felt the responsibility was all mine.  As Henry’s mum, it was, I felt, back to me to sort this out.  There was no Circle meeting that day, only a date in the diary for the next one too far away to help us now.

And then, I sent an email to the Circle members explaining what had happened.  Every member of the Circle responded, some with much needed words of support, but others also with actions, taking it upon themselves to contact people, chase things up and generally help us to get back on track.  Henry and I were not alone and Henry’s week is full again, not quite the same as the week we’d originally planned but better!

So, after years of battling alone, I’m learning that it is good to share and I am so grateful to the Circle for their on-going support for me and Henry in between Circles.

By Henry’s mum