Family's plea after autistic son escapes school
A mother says her son regularly climbs fences in their back garden and has "no sense of danger".
By BBC News
A family has urged greater public awareness after their severely autistic seven-year-old son escaped from school and spent 25 minutes outside the grounds.
Jamie, who is non-verbal and has epilepsy, was taking part in forest play at Brooke School in Rugby when he climbed a tree and used his body weight on a branch to fall into a park behind the school.
The park had access to main roads. Jamie was later found safe, but he has not been able to explain where he went during the escape.
His mother, Jade, said the incident happened despite close supervision and security measures at the school. She said Jamie could climb fences and large trees “as fast as a squirrel”.
The family said Jamie regularly climbs fences in their back garden and has “no sense of danger”. They said he can run quickly but cannot communicate, meaning people may not immediately realise he is vulnerable.
Jade said a neighbour later told her they had seen Jamie in their garden and watched him climb over a fence, but no alarm had been raised.
Jamie’s family wants safeguarding arrangements reviewed for children who may wander or leave supervised settings. Jade suggested that schools should identify possible escape routes, check physical security and have clear emergency procedures that staff can follow immediately.
She also questioned whether secure location technology could be made available to families of children at risk of wandering.
The family hopes Jamie’s experience will encourage people to recognise that some vulnerable children may not be able to speak or explain what has happened to them.