Share Your Heart

On Friday the School will be marking Williams Syndrome Awareness Weekend and Thomas, in Chestnuts Class, is baking heart-shaped biscuits to share with everyone at break-time. All donations will go to the Williams Syndrome Foundation, a registered charity, which increases the awareness of the condition, funds research and supports people with Williams Syndrome and also those who love, care for and educate them. More information about Williams Syndrome and the Williams Syndrome Foundation UK can be found on their website.

Williams Syndrome is a rare and randomly occurring genetic disorder that affects around 1 in 18,000 people. It is so rare that most people, even most medical professionals, have never heard of it.  It causes a range of medical and developmental difficulties and the effects vary widely from person to person.  So, people with Williams Syndrome have a unique pattern of emotional, physical and mental strengths and weaknesses. For parents and teachers, learning about this pattern is essential if they are to understand properly a Williams’ child and help them achieve their potential. They can only do this if the child has been diagnosed and so the aim of the Awareness Weekend is to increase the likelihood of children with Williams Syndrome receiving a timely diagnosis.