From Transition visits to A New Home at The Meath in 2026
Hannah during Christmas 2025 with her mum, dad and brother.
Hannah moved to The Meath at the tail end of 2025, the Christmas break marked the end of her transition period. New Year brought with it a new home at Little Meath for Hannah.
During transitional visits to The Meath, Hannah seemed to thrive on the vibrancy of the busy community. She smiles lots and enjoys being around people. She likes music, animals and socialising. While her swish purple wheelchair and sparkly silver trainers hint at a bold personality, her warm smile and open arms broadcast to all at The Meath her sense of fun and desire to socialise. Behind the scenes, staff work to support Hannah with 24 hour care to manage her epilepsy and other care needs as well as possible.
Hannah has cerebral palsy and epilepsy. She is nonverbal and is a full-time wheelchair user. Her mother, Julia and Father Ian come from a large family, Julia explained,
“She’s so sociable and loves being around people because she’s used to a busy family life. Ian and I both have lots of siblings, and Hannah grew up with her brother Sam. She also loves animals, as she grew up with lots of relatives who brought their dogs to visit.”
Early Years
Hannah was born in 1997 with her umbilical cord wrapped around her neck, which resulted in a lack of oxygen. Consequently she developed epilepsy as a baby at just 3 months old. Later, ss she grew, her seizures became more frequent until, at one point, she was experiencing over 100 seizures a day. Her mother, Julia recalled the tragedy of seeing her daughter begin to regress, just at the time that young children usually begin to make fast developmental progress.
Epilepsy Treatment and Managing Seizures
During her first few years, Hannah was under the epilepsy consultancy at Guy’s Hospital. Despite early diagnoses and specialist epilepsy advice, the lengthy process of trying various epilepsy medicines, didn’t stop her seizures. Julia and Ian, recalled that there were four occasions when Hannah’s tonic-clonic seizures required her to be rushed to hospital.
As Hannah grew up, her seizures continued. A wealth of photos and videos taken by her loving parents show a happy childhood. Family gatherings, parties and happy occasions are documented alongside her four hip operations and spinal fusion procedure. Whether pictured in hospital or at a family gathering, Hannah’s smiles and the proud gazes of her family are a constant.
Attending Chailey- A special Needs Secondary School
At the age of 12, Hannah attended Chailey Heritage School, a special needs school in rural West Sussex. Initially, she was a day pupil but later began boarding during the week and returning home on weekends. Having thrived in her busy and active secondary education environment, Hannah’s parents were subsequently eager to find her an adult setting that would offer ample opportunities for socialisation and engagement.
Chailey Heritage School
From Education to Care- Finding The Right Support
Hannah moved to the Queen Elizabeth’s Foundation for Disabled People, a care home in Leatherhead, Surrey. This nurturing environment provided her with the care and support she needed. Here Hannah enjoyed lots of sociable discos and karaoke activities. Unfortunately, the QEF, a charitable organisation, closed down in 2023 due to a lack of funding. Therefore, Hannah, like many others who had been supported by QEF, was in search of a new home. Julia explained
“At the time, there wasn’t space available at The Meath. We needed to find somewhere suitable for Hannah but due to the urgency, she ended up moving further away from us. She moved to Oakdown in rural East Sussex, a care home for adults with disabilities. She was happy there, but it was difficult for us to get to.”
Moreover, the Oakdown House website still proudly shows a picture of Hannah smiling in their grounds, alongside information about various activity sessions. Ultimately, it’s no surprise that Hannah has adapted to life at The Meath so well; both Oakdown and The Meath offer a range of activities and are situated in beautiful surroundings.
A New Home at The Meath Epilepsy Charity
At The Meath, Hannah has enjoyed visits from animals and participates in therapeutic music sessions at the Skills Centre.
Following a gradual transition, supported by her parents, Hannah moved into Little Meath, a cosy annex home at The Meath. Here, she lives with her new peers and receives support from staff to help her live as independently as possible. Dan, Senior Support Worker at Little Meath commented
“It has been a pleasure welcoming Hannah to her new home at Little Meath. Although the transition has understandably brought some anxiety due to the significant change, she has settled in well. Hannah has received a warm welcome from her housemates and has already built some lovely friendships. She brings a fresh energy to Little Meath, and it’s wonderful to see how much she enjoys being sociable.
It is a privilege to support her, and we all look forward to sharing many enjoyable moments together at The Meath and beyond as the weather becomes warmer.”
Julia and Ian observed that Hannah seems well cared for and supported in her new home. Her mum explained
“She’s always well presented; staff even gave her wheelchair a clean. They also took the time and effort to mount the wooden name letters I gave them onto a wooden plaque, and put it on her bedroom door. These things really do mean a lot, it shows that staff really care.”
A brief visit to Little Meath and a conversation with resident Peter reveals much about how Hannah is settling in. Peter observed
“She likes music and she’s always smiling. She gets on well with Adam, they are good friends.”
Support to Embrace New Opportunities
Meanwhile, Philippa who lives in another on-site house, got to know Hannah when out in The Meath grounds. She approached Julia and Ian to let them know that she is available as a friend to Hannah, and commented
“She’s lovely, she’s my friend. She reached out and hugged me- I think that’s how she speaks.”
Taking in Philippa’s lovely comment, Julia reflected
“It is how she speaks! Hannah reaches out to others as her gateway to the world. It’s so lovely that her peers at The Meath, as well as staff recognise that Hannah reaching out to people is her way of trying to reach the keys which unlock her world.”
Hannah has the support that she needs to reach out and grab the opportunities on offer at The Meath and beyond. Having made great progress with moving in and making new friends, her parents look forward to her taking up some new opportunities on offer at The Skills Centre and to taking advantage of the nicer weather and getting out in the local area more.
Ian explained that being able to visit Hannah easily by train from their home in Dorking is so much easier for him.
“I have a visual impairment and cannot drive, therefore being so near to Hannah and being able to visit her by train so easily is ideal. She moved in winter and it has rained a lot in recent weeks, but I really look forward to taking Hannah out to explore Godalming more.”
We look forward to seeing Hannah flourish as she experiences more opportunities at her new home.
Special thanks to Julia and Ian for sharing Hannah’s story on her behalf and thanks to Hannah for joining The Meath Community with a warm smile and open arms.