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Whether you're a parent, a teacher or a pupil, we all count on our schools to be safe. If your child has had an accident at school because of someone else's negligence, we could help you make a claim for compensation on a No Win No Fee* basis.
Our expert team of specialist children's accidents solicitors are experienced in dealing with the complicated nature of school accident claims. We're dedicated to securing the best outcome for you and your child, and we'll be there to provide support every step of the way. Call us today on 0800 056 4110 for a free consultation.
We'll help your child get the medical treatment they need, as well as therapy and rehabilitative care. Because children's bodies are still growing, the full effect of their injuries may not become fully apparent until they get older. Any compensation we secure for you will take into consideration the impact on their lives, not just now, but for the future.
You may have to take time off work to look after your child and look at alternative methods of education for them, such as private tutoring. Compensation can help cover lost earnings and fund the expense of home schooling. We will always fight to get you the level of compensation that you and your child deserve.
If you're interested in making a claim for yourself or on behalf of a child, call us on 0800 056 4110 or contact our solicitors online.
When you contact us, you’ll speak to one of our friendly team members, who will talk to you about your child’s injury, or yours, if you have been injured. This initial consultation is free and from there, we’ll advise you on the best way to take your claim forward.
Contacting Those Responsible For Your Child’s Injuries
We’ll then get in touch with those responsible for your child’s accident at an early stage to see if they accept the blame for what happened. If they accept responsibility, we’ll try to secure some compensation upfront, which can fund private medical care and expenses while the claim is ongoing. These payments, known as interim payments, will be taken out of the final compensation award.
Gathering Evidence
Our experts will look into your case in detail, gathering evidence from various sources such as witnesses, CCTV and independent medical professionals.
We’ll employ medical professionals to find out how your child’s accident has impacted on their future health and they’ll recommend the care your child needs to make the best recovery possible.
Final Settlement & Compensation Awarded
All personal injury cases involving children have to go before a judge for an infant approval hearing. This hearing happens even when a compensation sum has been agreed with your opponent and is in place to make sure that your child gets a fair settlement.
While the odd bump or scrape in the playground might be expected, oversights can lead to more serious injury. Where injury or illness could have been prevented, this can constitute negligence.
Examples of this could include:
Faulty equipment, such as desks, chairs or toys
Slippery floors or loose carpets
Contaminated or underprepared food in the canteen
Lack of adequate supervision
Children cannot be wrapped in cotton wool and accidents do happen. However, you have a right to expect that your child will be kept safe while on school grounds or elsewhere under staff supervision – on a school trip, for example. When safety procedures are not followed it can lead to harm. Making a personal injury claim not only enables you to secure compensation for your child, but could also help highlight problems and ensure that the same mistakes are not made in future.
If you would like to find out more about making a claim, contact us free on 0800 056 4110.
By making a personal injury compensation claim on behalf of your child, you can access funds to help cover expenses and any medical treatment they might need.
Every personal injury case is different, so there's no set amount of compensation your child will receive. The final amount awarded will depend on your family's circumstances, the severity of your child's injuries and their chances of making a full recovery. In child injury cases we often have to consider how the child's symptoms could develop in the future as some injuries can develop with growth.
Our children's accident lawyers could help you get compensation for:
Private medical treatment - to help speed up and maximise recovery
Home tutors- if your child has to take a lot of time off school, compensation can pay for tutoring to help them keep up with their work
Loss of earnings - for any time off work you have to take to look after your child
Expenses - such as travelling to medical appointments
Rehabilitation - to make sure your child makes the best recovery they can, compensation can pay for rehab and support both now and in the future
For more information on making a child injury claim, contact our experts today on 0800 056 4110.
If you are claiming for yourself, you usually have three years from the date of the accident to make a claim. By getting in touch with us shortly after your accident, it can make collecting evidence a little easier as there are often fewer problems finding witnesses whose statements we need to support your case.
If you're making a claim on behalf of a child, you'll normally be able to make a claim up until their 18th birthday. Despite this, we urge you to contact us as soon as possible if your child has been injured in an accident because we could help them access rehabilitation and support to help with their recovery.
We could also help you make a claim if you were in an accident before you turned 18. If you want to claim compensation for an accident that happened while you were a child, you will have three years from your 18th birthday to make a claim.
If your child's injury is the result of someone else's negligence, we could help you make a claim. Examples of those you could make a claim against include:
Schools and academies
Teaching staff and others employed by the school
Trusts in charge of the school or academy
To find out more about how we could help you, contact us on 0800 056 4110.
Many of our cases are funded with a No Win No Fee agreement. This means that there's no financial risk* to you when making a compensation claim.
At the start of your case we'll discuss funding options with you, advising you which we think is most suitable. If you have legal expenses insurance (LEI) or are covered by a trade union policy, these may be better options to fund your claim. Legal expenses insurance is included in many household insurance policies, so it's always worth checking whether you're already covered.
If we think you're best supported by a No Win No Fee agreement, we'll explain the process clearly. This involves setting up an insurance policy that will protect you, at no cost to you. You'll only have to pay anything when your claim is successful – your opponent will pay most of our fees.
Please visit our No Win No Fee page for more information on how it works.
We have a specialist team of highly qualified and experienced personal injury solicitors who have years of experience in helping families claim compensation after their child was injured in an accident.
This experience means that we're aware of the issues that you and your child will be facing and we acknowledge that your child's health is your main priority. We'll work hard to get your child access to the best care on offer, using our contacts at support groups across the country to put in place a rehabilitation plan.
Your child's injury can have an impact upon the entire family, so we work closely with other departments at the firm so we can give you detailed advice on issues such as:
Educational problems
Accommodation
Ongoing care
Family matters
Financial matters
As the largest personal injury team in the country, with offices across the UK, you can be reassured that you're getting the best legal help available. We've won awards for our client care and focus on rehabilitation, picking up the Claimant Solicitor of the Year prize at the Rehabilitation First Awards on seven different occasions.
The compensation means that I can have the care that I really need rather than what’s provided as a bare minimum."
Rosie, client
Frequently Asked Questions
Who Can Make a School Accident Claim?
Claims for school accidents are usually made on behalf of children who have been injured on school grounds. However, we could also help you make a claim if:
You have been injured on school grounds whilst collecting your child or visiting for an event, such as parents' evening
You are employed in a school and have been injured on school grounds.
For teachers and other staff who have sustained an injury at school, you can also visit our Workplace Accidents section for more information.
If you are making a claim on behalf of an injured child you do not have to be their parent or guardian. Claims for children under 18 are made by "litigation friends", an adult specially appointed by the court. This could be a parent or family friend, but equally could be a solicitor or professional advocate.
Read more about litigation friends in our Children's Accident section. Alternatively, contact us free today on 0800 056 4110 to talk with one of the team.
What Happens To Children’s Compensation?
Compensation for children is usually kept in a protected account until they turn 18. The amount of compensation has first to be agreed in an infant approval hearing before any funds can be paid out.
In an infant approval hearing, the judge will consider all of the evidence to decide whether or not they agree with the proposed amount of compensation. They will take into account things like the extent of the child’s injuries and the cost of ongoing care they will need. As the litigation friend, you could be asked to provide information about this to support the claim.
Your child might need to attend these hearings but this can depend on their age and the severity of their injuries.
The court will keep the compensation until your child turns 18; at this point they will receive their settlement as well as any interest accrued. If there is a need to access some of the compensation earlier to cover care and education costs, for example - we can help you make an application to the court. The judge will decide whether or not this early payment is in the child’s best interests.
We can also help you set up a personal injury trust for your child. Personal injury trusts can ensure that any compensation awarded does not adversely affect any other benefits that your child may be entitled to receive when they turn 18.
A personal injury trust can make sure your child has protection for the future and can only be accessed by trustees. You can make yourself a trustee and the other trustee must be a solicitor. In order to get money out of the personal injury trust, all trustees must agree to its release.
For more information on setting up a personal injury trust, contact our personal injury trust experts on 0800 056 4110.
What Support Is Available For My Family?
At Irwin Mitchell, we are committed not just to securing compensation for our clients, but also to helping them get the care and support they need in what is often the most challenging time in their lives.
If you make a claim with us, our expert Support and Rehabilitation Coordinators will be on hand to make life more manageable for you and your family. Life can change significantly after an injury, especially if your child has been left with a disability. Things they can help with include:
Organising assessments of your child's immediate and long term needs
Co-ordinating services for your family to help with any impact on your lifestyle
Providing practical support with day-to-day issues such as budgeting, coping strategies and support with ongoing rehabilitation
Monitoring progress of rehabilitation and implementing improvements
Public Law
We also have an in-house Public Law department who can help with any issues regarding your child’s education needs and disability entitlements. Our lawyers have helped children and their families with a range medical and social care issues, such as:
We are committed to handling your child's personal injury claim we'll always suggest other areas where we could support you and your family. For more information on making a claim with us, call 0800 056 4110.
All Scottish cases will be handled by the Scottish law firm with which we are associated, Irwin Mitchell Scotland LLP. The law relating to funding is different in Scotland and you will receive separate advice about what that means as well as a separate funding agreement.
*To make a No Win No Fee claim, you need to enter into an agreement that's linked to a suitable insurance policy. We'll explain this in more detail before we start your claim.
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All Scottish cases will be handled by the Scottish law firm with which we are associated,