Blog
Concerns over special educational needs reforms
Plans to provide personal budgets for families with special educational needs has raised concerns with Janet O'Keefe, a speech and language therapist who is also an expert witness for families during tribunal appeals against their local authorities. The minister for...
Champneys boot camp – the big weigh in
Final day, Champneys boot camp, Henlow Grange. We queued nervously for our weigh in this morning after our 7am run/power walk, the last at the end of an exhausting, but exhilarating, week. I was determined to wear the same jeans I wore for my first weigh in and not...
Champneys boot camp, day 7
Day 7, Champneys boot camp, Henlow Grange. Today is our last day and after a week of extreme exercise, pushing myself beyond my pain barrier, sacrificing tea, coffee, alcohol and bread, surviving on 1500 calories a day, I was also able to enjoy a daily therapeutic...
Champneys boot camp, day 6
Day 6, Champneys boot camp, Henlow Grange. There is a tremendous bonding among our group, a strong feeling of comradeship and mutual support which has built up during the week. If one exhausted boot camper feels they cannot move another muscle, they are always given...
Champneys boot camp, day 5
Day 5, Champneys boot camp, Henlow Grange. We are wearing Ki Fit armband monitors throughout the week which record how many calories we are burning throughout the day during all our activities, as well as our sleep pattern. Last night we were given some feedback, and...
Champneys boot camp, day 4
Day 4, Champneys boot camp, Henlow Grange. We are half way through the week now and the pain is beginning to hit hard as our punishing fitness routine - six house of activity a day - takes its toll on our bodies and we begin to hurt all over, especially our thighs and...
Champneys boot camp, day 3
Day 3, Champneys boot camp, Henlow Grange. The strict exercise and diet regime is beginning to have an impact. One of our fellow boot campers left a class early yesterday, and later successfully pleaded for a side dish of beetroot in addition to her calorie counted...
Champneys boot camp, day 2
Day 2, Champneys boot camp, Henlow Grange. I suffered a major setback today. After our 7am power walk, and the best breakfast I have ever had (more on this later), we headed for a local playing field to play Kwik Cricket, but a modified version which involved all team...
Champneys boot camp, day 1
Day 1, Champneys boot camp, Henlow Grange. It's 9.30pm and I still haven't unpacked my bags. My newspapers which I picked up this morning remain crisp and unopened. Since arriving at Champney boot camp at Henlow Grange at 11am, I've not had a minute to draw breath....