Lucy Jacobs, of Lowestoft, publishes Please Hear Us to share experiences of caring for SEND children in Suffolk

A new book has captured the voices of 19 people sharing their experiences of caring for children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

Please Hear Us is the second book from Lucy Jacobs, of Lowestoft, who is a mother to two children with additional needs.

Her debut, Please Hear Me, published last year, detailed her own family’s journey through the SEND system in Suffolk and was met with support from readers who saw their own stories reflected in her words.

“My children had an incredibly hard time working through the system and, as a family, we all really suffered,” she said. “We are lucky to be in a position now where we have the support we need, but not everyone is.

“I just want to support others so they don’t have to go through what we went through.”

Motivated by the response to her first book, Lucy decided to expand the conversation by collecting poems, letters, passages and artwork from other parents, carers, family members and young people across the county.

The result is Please Hear Us — a heartfelt anthology that captures the emotional highs and lows of raising SEND children, including the long and difficult fight to secure an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP), a process which she said can be emotionally and mentally draining for many families.

The project came together in autumn and was launched on Amazon in March.

Lucy said: “We’ve had families read it and say they no longer feel so alone — which is so good to hear because that really was the aim of the book.

“We want to raise awareness that there’s always someone out there who is willing to support you, whether that’s through a support group or even through our Facebook page.”

All profits from the book will be donated to Lift Loud For Danny, a charity supporting families through mental health issues and loneliness with support groups in Lowestoft.

Reflecting on the process of compiling Please Hear Us, Lucy wanted to thank all the contributors who shared their experiences.

She said: “I’m so proud of all the people who took part in this book. A lot of them had never written anything like this before and were unsure about their writing abilities — but the contributions are incredible and so emotional.

“It takes a lot of courage to write something like that, and to know it’s going out there for anyone to read, so I just wanted to say a massive thank you to everyone involved.”

One of the contributors, Kelly Harris, a lifelong friend of Lucy’s, praised Lucy for offering support during her journey to secure an EHCP and a school placement for her daughter.

Kelly said: “We were so proud of Lucy when she published her original book of poetry and felt inspired to write our own poems when she began collating the voices of parents, carers and young people.

“We can't thank her enough for being so supportive to us and many other local families.”

Jan Russ added: “This collection of heartfelt words is something I'm sure, every parent or carer of a child or young adult can relate to.

“I could never put into words how I'd cope or what it's like for the person on the spectrum, but all the writers have managed to note it all down so beautifully — it's very moving.”