Tom Gordon MP joins constituent Natalie Sadler in Hemiplegia campaign

Liberal Democrat MP Tom Gordon joined Natalie Sadler, a local mother and
campaigner from Harrogate, in Parliament as she pushes to improve support for
hemiplegic children and their families.

The campaign seeks to end the postcode lottery for treatment of hemiplegia, a
common form of cerebral palsy that affects movement and function on one side of
body and improve services for children and families.

Natalie’s 6-year-old son Samuel has the condition on his right-hand side as a result
of a stroke in the womb.

Tom attended the event on the Needs of Children with Hemiplegia at Natalie’s
invitation last week, hearing from clinicians, researchers and families. It offered an
opportunity for politicians to learn how to improve outcomes for the condition and
raise awareness.

Tom said:
“I’m always incredibly impressed by Natalie’s ability to take tough situations of her
family and use it as fuel to advocate for others. The experience she shared as a
parent were incredibly insightful.

“Natalie told us about how she spends a lot of money on additional private therapies
for her son; it really underpinned how much we need to end the postcode lottery for
hemiplegia care.

“I’ll be writing to the new Secretary of State for Health on the matter and using my
position in Parliament to raise awareness of hemiplegia.”