World Cerebral Palsy Day 2025 takes place on 6 October every year, with this year marking the 14th event since it started in 2012. It is a worldwide movement that seeks to celebrate the achievements of the CP community. The theme for this year is Unique and United, celebrating what makes every member of the CP community special, recognising individuality whilst striving for inclusivity and better care.

Cerebral Palsy is a complex lifelong condition caused by injury to the developing brain during pregnancy, around the time of birth or in the first 2 years of life. Although it primarily affects movement, posture and coordination, it can also affect vision, hearing and communication and be lined to secondary conditions, such as epilepsy, intellectual disability and behavioural disorders.

It is the most common lifelong physical disability, with it being estimated that over 50 million people live with it worldwide and 350 million parents, caregivers and family members directly affected. Cerebral palsy varies in severity and can affect different parts of the body (and in the most severe cases, the whole body), but the most common symptoms of this are:

• Delay in developmental milestones
• Weak arms or legs
• Stiffness or floppiness
• Fidgety, jerky or clumsy movements
• Random, uncontrolled movements
• Muscle spasms
• Shaking hands
• Walking on tiptoes

Cerebral Palsy is not always due to medical negligence, but a recent Freedom of Information Request to NHS Resolution, which is the organisation which deals with medical negligence claims against NHS Trusts, revealed that 1 in 14 cerebral palsy claims were preventable over the past 11 years.

We are currently acting on behalf of Miss X, a six-year-old child who has been diagnosed with cerebral palsy. She suffered damage to her brain due to complications and mismanagement surrounding her birth, which was wholly preventable.

During pregnancy, Miss X’s mum was a regular user of cannabis and tobacco, and so there were risk factors for fetal growth restriction, which is when a baby’s growth in the womb is less than expected.

At 38 weeks + 6 days, it was suspected that Miss X’s growth was slowing, and that she was measuring on the 10th centile, which means that she was smaller than 90% of other babies.

Miss X’s mum made 3 visits to the Hospital from 39 weeks with reduced movements and painful contractions. On the 3rd visit, an examination found that she was 2cm dilated and a CTG commenced, which monitors the baby’s heartrate.

About 30 minutes later, the CTG was noted to be concerning and her mum’s waters were noted to have broken. Unfortunately, Miss X was not born until approximately 2 hours later; she was born in a poor condition and required immediate resuscitation. She was transferred to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, and treated with therapeutic hypothermia, which is where a baby is cooled after delivery, and spent 6 days in intensive care.

In the months and years that followed, Miss X has faced ongoing challenges and was ultimately diagnosed with four-limb mixed spastic-dystonic cerebral palsy.

Miss X’s mum approached Williamsons Solicitors to assist with her claim. The Hospital Trust made early admissions, admitting that if Miss X had been born 20 minutes earlier than she had, she would have avoided the injury to her brain and thus would not have suffered with cerebral palsy.

We have recently obtained a substantial Interim Payment of compensation for Miss X to assist with education and day to day assistance whilst the claim is ongoing and it is anticipated that, when the claim settles, it will provide for Miss X for the rest of her life and ensure that she has the support that she needs to live the best possible life.

Such a claim cannot change what has happened, but it can get you crucial answers as to what happened, as well as seeking to obtain compensation which can assist with rehabilitation.

Our team at Williamsons have a wealth of knowledge in cerebral palsy and birth injury claims, and if you have concerns in relation to the treatment received by you or a loved one during pregnancy, birth or in the first 2 years of life, please feel free to contact us at Williamsons on 01482 323697 to discuss how we can help.