Tributes to Zahrah Manuel at centre of fight that opened schools to the powerless
Later generations must know what we went through, says mother after death of 22-year-old
Published: 03 June 2010
by TOM FOOT
A MOTHER who fought trailblazing campaigns that led to sweeping education reforms said last night (Wednesday) she was proud of the legacy left by her daughter, who has died suddenly.
Preethi Manuel occupied Camden Council’s education department after daughter Zahrah was rejected from mainstream primary schools in the mid-1990s because of her disability.
Zahrah – who suffered from cerebral palsy and was confined to a wheelchair – was eventually accepted by Beckford Primary School in West Hampstead, but when she moved to a secondary was turned away from Hampstead School on her first day after being told only a “special school” could support her needs.
Ms Manuel fought successfully to have that decision overturned in the High Court so that Zahrah went on to reap the benefits of a full comprehensive education. The 22-year-old died peacefully in her sleep at home in West Hampstead two weeks ago.
The mother-and-daughter team became known across the country for their spirited and often high-profile campaigns.
Zahrah’s case is credited with directly influencing ministers in creating progressive laws which since 2001 allow parents of special needs children to choose for them to be taught in state comprehensives.
Ms Manuel said: “We fought for the powerless, like my daughter was. Now there has been a change in attitudes and schools are different now. That has to be remembered. Later generations have to be reminded of what we went through – they need to be aware of how these things changed.”
Camden Council was forced to rebuild Hampstead School to make it accessible to children with special education needs and disability following Ms Manuel’s campaign.
She said: “It showed that they could provide for someone like my daughter.
“The fact that the whole school was changed for her, and now is accessible to other disabled children, that makes me so proud. It made a huge difference to her, and to disabled children in general. If you go to a special school, you are likely to be isolated when you leave.”
Only two weeks before Zahrah’s death former school friends had stopped and talked to her in the street, her mother said. Many filled the chapel in Golders Green for the funeral on Sunday.
Ms Manuel said: “She died suddenly. It was totally unexpected. Everything had been normal – she died in her sleep.
“We have had wonderful letters from her friends, saying how happy they were that she was a friend of theirs. She embraced everybody. In the last weeks of her life, we would be walking down the road and people would recognise her. It gave her a sense of belonging. That is so important. She felt good about herself.”
She added: “Of course, there were difficulties. There are matters of bullying that have to be addressed. But if Zahrah can have a successful education, other children can benefit.”
Cerebral palsy is a physical condition affecting movement and causing injury to the brain. Every person with cerebral palsy is affected in a different way.
Ms Manuel said she hoped disabled children would not suffer under Conservative education reforms. “David Cameron wants to have two sets of schools – special and mainstream – and allow us to choose between the two,” she added. “We will have parents fighting for the best special schools and for the best mainstream schools – when what we want is for the whole of society to progress as one.”
After leaving Hampstead, Zahrah continued to encounter problems at a further education college in Kilburn.
Ms Manuel said: “We had difficulty accessing college. She didn’t have the support of a trained assistant. It became unworkable. It was difficult – I had fought so many battles. The situation in colleges clearly needs to be advanced.”
One of Ms Manuel’s close friends, Rahila Gupta, who had to go to a special needs education tribunal to get her child into South Camden Community School in the 1990s, paid tribute to the family.
She said: “We encountered the same kind of battles that both Zahrah and Preethi have faced. As a result of their fights, there have been many policy changes. Hats off to her.”
She added: “I think it makes a massive difference to be included in a mainstream school. Of course, there were internal battles, but overall we had very good support.”
Mrs Gupta set up the Nihal Armstrong Trust, named after her son who died five years ago, which campaigns for better rights for children with cerebral palsy.