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I had it in mind to post just one image, the upright shot of the young man in a wheelchair, as part of my “From The Archive” series but when I went looking at the rest of the images from this set thought they were particularly appropriate to the current situation we all find ourselves in and decided that I should post a few more as a picture story. 

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The pictures come from a feature shoot way back in October 2005 for the Times Educational Supplement for whom I was a regular contributor at the time. I spent the morning with teachers and pupils from Ty Gwyn Special School in Cardiff as they took part in a regular “Outdoors Experience” session in nearby woods. Just physically getting to the campsite was hard work, getting everyone on the minibus and then off and then through the forest to the campsite was no easy matter.

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The session gave the pupils chance to experience nature, everything from hugging trees to lighting camp fires. Everyone enjoyed it and I remember being so impressed with the dedication and patience of the staff.

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In times such as we are now in, we all appreciate the hard work and selfless work that carers perform and I think these images demonstrate that. I have nothing but admiration for the work they do.

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Seeing the pictures again I couldn’t help but wonder how youngsters requiring special need care and education are managing in this lockdown. I assume the schools are not open which leaves parents as 24/7 carers. My heart goes out to them as the task must be overwhelming.

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