A MUM who cares for her disabled daughter has landed a teaching assistant job to help children with special needs.

Sam Holden, who attends Leigh College, has progressed from Teaching Assistant Level 2 to Level 3.

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The 48-year-old has been a long time carer for her daughter, who was born at 27 weeks with spina bifida, hydrocephalus and also has epilepsy.

Due to this, Sam was unable to sustain her job in the civil service and had to become a full-time carer.

Sam has also had to overcome ovarian cancer herself but is now in a good place and with her 16-year-old daughter becoming more independent, she has been able to restart her career.

“Having been involved in my daughter’s school, I decided I’d like to work with children with special needs, which is why this course appealed to me,” said Sam, from Tyldesley.

“I wasn’t sure I’d be good enough to go back to College but I’m really enjoying meeting new friends and sharing ideas with others who do a similar job.”

Sam is now full-time at Landgate School in Ashton-in-Makerfield after impressing on work placement.

The specialist school in autism was the perfect fit for Sam to put her learning at College into practice.

“I love the job because it’s so rewarding to see kids develop and how they respond to different ways of learning," she added.

There’s even non-verbal learners here and I can use basic sign language to communicate with them.”

  • Wigan & Leigh College is offering Adult courses starting in January 2020 and is hosting an advice and enrolment event on Wednesday, January 8 from 4pm to 7pm at Parsons Walk. Any adults interested can register for the event at wigan-leigh.ac.uk/events/adult-enrolment