Lizzie Batten
Nominated by Amaze
Supporting parent carers, children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities to build their resilience, achieve positive outcomes and ensure their voices are heard.
Being a parent of a disabled child can sometimes feel like being lost in a complicated maze of bureaucracy. Thankfully, for over 25 years, Lizzie Batten has guided people through that maze.
As a carer herself, Lizzie knows how life changing it is to become a parent of a disabled child. Along with the many joys, there is the massive challenge of navigating through the services that should help your child. Parents can find themselves feeling isolated and vulnerable. Lizzie’s experience made her determined to create better support for parents in Brighton & Hove. That’s why in 1994, she joined other parents to form the life-changing Parent Link Project support group. Her drive and determination helped win funding and recognition from the council and just a few years later this led to the launch of Amaze, an award-winning local charity that now supports over 5,000 families with disabled children.
For the past 20 years, Lizzie has worked for Amaze in various roles. In fact, she is known for having a special talent for sensing exactly what will make the most difference for families and making that happen. One thing she spotted was that disabled children often missed out on the disability benefits they are entitled to get, because claiming them feels difficult and upsetting to parents. So she set up a service to change that. Lizzie and her team of volunteers have given guidance to thousands of families, helping them access the benefits they deserve. Lizzie herself is known for her empathy and positivity, which is a comfort and inspiration to many parents.
With Lizzie’s help, families are supported to get the right disability benefits for their child, money which can make the difference between struggling and thriving. As a result, there is always a huge demand for the service, and Lizzie goes above and beyond to try to make sure that no one misses out. Over the years, Lizzie has trained dozens of passionate volunteers and is a role model to them all. As a result of her incredible work, Lizzie is known and valued by thousands of families across the city. And thanks to Lizzie, parent-carers across Brighton feel that bit less isolated and more able to give their disabled children the good lives they want for them.