Mum Reveals Relief That ‘Superstar’ Son Will Be Looked After

A mother and her nine-year-old son from Liversedge are ‘looking to the future’ after receiving a settlement to help pay for specialist care and equipment he will need for the rest of his life after he was diagnosed with cerebral palsy.

Zach Eagling was born in a poor condition in June 2011.  There were problems and delays resuscitating him and he was found to have suffered a brain injury shortly afterwards.

At the age of three, he was diagnosed with cerebral palsy, which affects his mobility and cognitive development.

Following his diagnosis, Zach’s mum Claire Keer instructed medical negligence experts at Irwin Mitchell to investigate the care provided to her son.  Her specialist legal team have been helping Zach to access the specialist care and equipment he requires in his day-to-day life.

More recently, Claire and Zach moved into a house which has been adapted to meet the youngster’s needs.

The NHS Trust responsible for Zach’s care did not accept liability for his injuries but Irwin Mitchell has now secured a settlement from the Trust which will enable him to have care, equipment, therapy, support for his education, IT and the adapted house.

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“It’s been an absolute pleasure to get to know Zach and Claire over the past few years.

They have both shown such courage throughout everything, and Zach is an inspiration to so many others out there who may struggle with daily tasks and face their own challenges.

I’m so pleased we have reached a settlement in the case, which will make sure that Zach has all the specialist care he needs for the rest of his life and gives Claire some assurance for her son’s future. When the time comes, it will also help him to live as independently as possible.”
Rachelle Mahapatra - Partner

Over the years, Zach has seen a speech and language therapist, an occupational therapist and a physiotherapist.

He also lives with epilepsy and raised more than £20,000 for the Epilepsy Society last summer by walking laps of his garden.

Meanwhile, he and his mother have campaigned for the introduction of Zach’s Law to toughen up the laws relating to online bullying. Claire has met with representatives from Government in relation to the proposed Online Safety Bill and hopes it will include measures to prosecute ‘trolls’ abusing people online.

Claire, 38, said: “Zach is my little superstar.  He never lets anything stop him from enjoying life and doing what he wants to do, and I couldn’t be more proud of him. From his charity activity to the campaign to stop online abuse he really puts his all into everything.

“We’re incredibly grateful for all the support we’ve had from everyone, and thanks to the settlement we are now looking to the future with relief and excitement.  I’m so happy that I know Zach will be looked after.”

Commenting on the campaign to stop online abuse Claire added: “I really hope that this year we see proper action taken to tackle online abuse. It’s too easy for people to post things online and get away with it when they would likely never do the same to your face in the street. We need to do more to protect each other and build a more respectful culture.”

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