The mother of a terminally ill
11-year-old with alopecia said her daughter was forced to remove a pink wig she
wore to school as it might encourage others to dye their hair. Ashanti
Elliott-Smith suffers from a rare disease which causes her body to age eight
times faster than normal and means she is not expected to live past the age of
15. The pupil at Oakmeeds Community College, West Sussex, was told to take the
wig off by a teacher because it was 'not cold in the school' and she felt so
humiliated that she has not wanted return.
Her mother, Phoebe Smith, said:
'She was devastated when they told her to take it off. Her little heart was
broken. It's disgusting. It is bright but she should have the right to wear whatever
colour hair she wants. She was so proud of her hair but this has put her on a
downer. When I took her into school three teachers by the office said she
looked glamorous and beautiful and said how lovely her wig was.
'But as soon as I turned my back
they told her to remove it. It was so embarrassing for her. It was the first
time she wore the wig into school and she has not been back in since last
Thursday. It's a pink wig, come on, other children would have understood. I
have only got a few years left with her so we want her to live it to the full.'
Ashanti's rare condition,
Hutchinson Gilford Progeria, causes symptoms including stunted growth, hair
loss, weight loss, wrinkled skin, stiff joints, and heart disease.
The pink wig was donated by
friends as Ashanti's family struggles to afford human hair wigs.
Ms Smith said: 'There is no rule
about terminally ill children not being able to wear wigs. She looks a lot
different to other children. We get a lot of bad comments about Ashanti and
this knocked her right back.'
A student, Kate Boyd, commenting
on Facebook, said: 'She suffers with alopecia and I think she should be allowed
to wear a wig to school if it makes her confident and... makes her feel like
anyone else at school.'
Colin Taylor, Headteacher
Oakmeeds Community College, said: 'Ashanti attended school in a large purple
wig which was the first time she had appeared in school wearing a wig or any
form of head wear. Her Learning Mentor, who meets her every morning and
supports her throughout the day along with a Learning Support Assistant, spoke
to the Head of Year about it. It was agreed by the Director of Inclusion and
Head of Year that Ashanti would wear the wig home but not in lessons because it
was not cold in the school and she had never wanted to wear one before.
Ashanti wanted to wear the wig to
school to hide her alopecia, a side effect of Hutchinson Gildford Progeria
'We tried to discuss this with
Ashanti's mother on Thursday but we were not able to make contact with her. 'We
have worked closely with Ashanti's mother to ensure her wishes that her
daughter is treated like all other pupils are met. Ashanti is a pleasure to
have in the school and we believe we have done everything we can to meet both
her needs and her mother's requirements during the first half term. Ashanti has
settled well at Oakmeeds. At no time to our knowledge did she request special
consideration about head wear but we would fully understand it if Ashanti was
to need a hat or indeed a wig when the weather gets cold - even indoors.
'In the past other children have
worn wigs following serious illness, but ones that were of a natural look - not
large brightly coloured ones. We are more than happy to discuss this with
Ashanti and her mum when College starts again next week after the half term
break.'
Her father Albi Elliott ,
44, spent £3,500 charity money intended
for Ashanti to go swimming with dolphins
In June this year it emerged that
Ashanti's father stole £3,500 of charity money that was intended for her to go
swimming with dolphins.
She was given the donation by
Sussex British Motorcycle Owners Club (SBMOC) in 2010 so she could go for a once-in-a-lifetime
trip to America.
But her father Albi Elliott, 44,
hid the money from the rest of the family and within two months had spent it -
on trips to Tesco.
Blasting his actions as 'callous
and despicably devious', the judge at Chichester Crown Court jailed Elliott for
three years.
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