FORGOTTEN
NO MORE

The horror of what happened on May 22, 2017, has touched the lives of people across the world. Those haunting images of Manchester Arena in the aftermath of the terrorist atrocity are etched into the minds of millions - a night filled with such joy and delight turned into utter devastation in an instant. 
Twenty-two people lost their lives. A further 1,017 were injured. And hundreds more, while physically unharmed, continue to live with the psychological trauma of what happened when they innocently went to see pop megastar Ariana Grande in concert. 
The impact on the lives of those affected - many of them children and young people - is beyond comprehension. 
Initially, with the creation of The Greater Manchester Resilience Hub, dedicated support was on offer to protect the mental health of survivors, and donations came in from all corners of the world to boost resources. 
However, over time, sadly the access to support has diminished. The ongoing needs of many have meant they struggled to access treatment, and as 2020 progressed, the strain on the NHS as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic saw resources become increasingly scarce for survivors so badly in need.
But at a time when the support became harder to find, the need for it was only exacerbated. 
The independent public inquiry - the findings of which continue to be released in stages - revealed hugely traumatic details around the missed opportunities to stop bomber Salman Abedi, the lack of security around the Arena, the huge delays in medical support, the non-existent communication between emergency services. 
Such revelations around what happened that dreadful night add further distress to those already struggling with their trauma.
For many survivors, they felt alone, unsupported, forgotten, their loved ones not knowing what to do or where to turn. 
A vast proportion of those affected are young people, teenagers who should be experiencing the ‘normal’ concerns around puberty, school work, relationships, exams - but instead, are having to deal with the enormity of being part of a murderous suicide bomb attack. 
For Rachel DiClemente, CEO of Hudgell Solicitors, this was all too apparent. 
The law firm is looking after over 150 survivors, whose legal cases cannot proceed due to the ongoing release of the findings of Sir John Saunders from the Manchester Arena Inquiry – meaning any chance of accessing funds for rehabilitation cannot be pursued until the inquiry is concluded. 
But while the delay is sadly unavoidable due to the process, the need for action remained as urgent as ever. 

“These were deeply traumatised people, many of them young people, and they needed help and support. We would meet with them often and we’d hear that they felt they’d been forgotten.
“You couldn’t just stand by and not help; we knew there must be something we could do. 
“We did initially ask potential defendants to offer rehabilitation  , but this was declined, and we didn’t know when their claims would be able to proceed due to the ongoing public inquiry - we still don’t. 
“As any potential funding through civil claims was clearly some way off, we knew we needed to do something more urgently.”
In autumn 2020, Rachel approached Proclaim Care - a specialist rehabilitation case management company which works extensively in supporting people rebuild their lives after major injury and trauma - to investigate the possibility of them creating a bespoke programme for those supported by Hudgell Solicitors who were so badly in need. 
“Rachel came to us and explained the situation, and we said absolutely, we will help,” recalls Neil Irwin, commercial director of Proclaim Care. 
“We have a lot of experience in delivering a range of therapies, including psychological support after trauma, so we felt we could make a positive difference. 

The specialist team at Proclaim Care devised a bespoke screening assessment for each client, targeting urgent interventions for those most in need. 
And showing their dedication to those who needed their support, Hudgell Solicitors and Proclaim Care agreed to jointly fund the initiative, enabling survivors to access the urgent assessment and treatment they had previously been unable to find, while also making use of signposting to other appropriate services to enhance the support further. 
“We were really pleased we could come up with a way to ensure that rehabilitation was in place, in spite of the barriers to litigation,” says Rachel. 
Linda Ingram, clinical team leader at Proclaim Care, led the clinical efforts in the partnership. 
Under her guidance, each person was assessed by the rehabilitation team, and for those for whom such support was deemed to be appropriate - for some, they did not feel it was the right time, and for other very vulnerable clients, it was deemed more suitable they remain under NHS care - Immediate Needs Assessments were completed to enable the interventions to proceed without further delay. 
A mixture of virtual and face-to-face support was used, both to accommodate the restrictions imposed during the pandemic, and to offer clients the option of accessing support in whichever way they wished.
“The effects of what happened affected whole families, often we might have two or three people in the same household receiving our support, there were a number of generations affected by this,” says Linda. 
“It was very distressing, many of them had seen terrible things, and we saw PTSD, behavioural issues, and other kinds of problems affecting whole families because of what had happened. 
“Things like going out into crowds and crowded places were an issue, they didn’t want to go out into these kinds of situations anymore, it was having a really big impact. Places like the school bus or the school dinner hall could have very negative effects.
“The period where they were seeing the public inquiry on the news every night was particularly distressing, and there was often press intrusion to deal with too. There were so many things that happened since that night, which made their situation even worse. 
“We found that for many clients, they were just glad, grateful, to have someone to speak to. To have someone to listen to them. 
“They so badly needed the support, and while they may have had it initially from the Resilience Hub, they had been on their own for a long time.”
As well as direct interventions - which primarily focused around psychological support, behavioural therapy, physiotherapy and some benefits and vocational advice - a central resource was also created by the Proclaim Care team to share support services, charities and organisations they could potentially signpost to.  
“It was about taking a really client-centred approach to what their needs were and finding ways to meet that,” says Linda. 
“We were regularly assessing the work we were doing. We had regular calls with the lead solicitor on the case, monitoring the progress of each individual. We needed to make sure things were going in a positive direction for our clients.”
And as well as supporting clients, Proclaim Care also took steps to ensure its team were helped to manage the impact this had on their own mental health and wellbeing. 
“The team were very tight, but we held regular debrief sessions to allow them to talk about what they’d heard. Some of the accounts can be quite graphic, and that can take its toll on those who are providing the support. We were very mindful of the effect it could be having on them, so addressed that throughout,” says Linda. 
But for those survivors who were receiving the support, the outcomes are helping to show the impact of the partnership in changing the outlook for those who were struggling to cope. 

Of an exemplar of six people who have completed their psychological therapy, the evidence is there to see. 

“The pre- and post-therapy scores suggest these clients have received effective therapy at the appropriate time,” says Linda. 
“One of the techniques commonly required was exposure to crowded places, which has reportedly achieved good outcomes. As part of the process, clients were to be equipped with tools and strategies to manage their psychological wellbeing through the ongoing public inquiries and longer term.  
“The partnership has been very effective in helping to identify, support and achieve good outcomes for clients.”
The partnership has also received national recognition, being named winner of the partnership initiative of the year at the CMSUK Awards 2022. 
Judges praised Hudgell Solicitors and Proclaim Care for creating such a life-changing initiative, and for displaying a “willingness to find solutions in the absence of funding, alongside the incredible care and commitment shown to a vulnerable group of clients”. 
“We’re so pleased we could help and put something together that enabled those who needed the support to receive it,” says Rachel. 
“We hope that in the near future we will be able to proceed with the legal cases for our clients, to enable them to access the ongoing rehabilitation many of them need. 
“But we are very pleased to have been able to work with Neil, Linda and the team in putting this together, at what was a very important time.