16 | Acquisition International, Influential Businesswoman Awards 2024 Education, Law, and Public Health Advocacy and Representation, Normal Like Me Ltd (NLM) champions children’s and parents’ rights. Believing every child deserves the opportunity to reach their full potential, the company is committed to giving them the understanding and choices that enable that to happen. Founder and CEO of NLM, Janet Willicott, is challenging outdated, unscientific thinking and substandard comprehension to herald a new age of understanding and positive outcomes for healthier and fulfilling lives. Most Inspiring Health Representation & Advocacy Businesswoman 2024 (London): Janet Willicott s the mother, carer, and educator of a child with rare diseases, Janet Willicott has a deep understanding of the challenges faced by millions of parents and children who fall through the cracks of systems built around ‘normalcy’ or the health and education ‘mean’. Born and raised in Africa, Janet moved to the UK 30 years ago following a stay in Germany. As a former law student, Janet became disillusioned with her chosen career after realising that law and justice are not synonymous. Whilst in Germany, Janet also spent time caring for disabled children and this brief diversion in her working life changed the course of her career forever. She told us, “In my time working in Germany, I realised it was not me supporting the disabled children, but rather them supporting me to grow and gain wisdom. When I came to England to visit my paternal family, I decided to stay. I dived into the corporate world of legal compliance as an environmental and public health scientist. I networked, formed connections, and learned how to be more British, especially the change in accent. When I fell pregnant and gave birth to my half-Greek son, it was exhilarating but, at the same time, very isolating. With no family nearby to help, I relied on my colleagues, who have since become my lifelong friends.” When Janet’s son, whom she describes as ‘one of the most amazing humans to grace this planet’, was born with an array of complex health anomalies and disabilities, all the skills and professional knowledge she had gained until that point came together. She explains, “I had to learn to navigate a system not geared toward a child described as an enigma. I applied my qualifications, skills and sheer gumption and committed to fighting for my child’s rights, eventually securing appropriate health, education, and social care provision, which afforded him a better way of life. I secured expert genetic studies, health analysis and effective support - which led to his being diagnosed with a Rare Disease (SETD 5) in 2013 – he was one of seven. The study data was published in the Journal of Human Genetics in the USA in 2014, thus changing medical, scientific, and human genetic knowledge worldwide.” Striving to understand the intricacies of an often-flawed system, Janet founded NLM in 2016. The company name is inspired by Janet’s son, who commented one day, “I just want people to see me as normal, Mommy, because I am normal like me, and everybody is normal like themselves; why can’t some people understand this? All children want to be happy, like me.” So often, society keeps referring to the word normal. I ask – what is normal? Does normal exist? Or is it a fallacy? We are all as normal as the day we were born. We share one commonality – that we are of one human race. Today, NLM offers consultancy, specialist forensic services, and advocacy in Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND), Public, Educational, Human Rights Law, and Family Law Support Services to secure legal public health principles. NLM also offers educational representation through the UK’s specialist educational judicial courts. The company works with governments, local authorities, health services, professional bodies, charities, rare disease groups and international Health Agencies. Janet focuses on DME [Double Multiple Exceptional] Young People (Children with high learning potential and one or more special education needs or disability. DME children can, therefore, be defined as a distinct minority within a minority. Janet’s next specialist focuses on forensic services in analysing health misdiagnoses or false accusations of complex health. NLM’s newest service is researching and preparing Standalone Phenotypic Guides documenting a child or young person’s expressions, traits, and behaviours linked to their specific condition, disability, or rare disease. This removes any guesswork, enabling all professionals invested in supporting the child to understand better and address their needs holistically; this is known as a Needs-based and not a resourcebased intervention. Janet’s passion and purpose are about helping parents (often women) who are wrongly accused of emotionally harming/ abusing or neglecting their children. She told us, “Parents can sometimes find themselves the subject of Social Services Child Protection matters through no fault of their own. That’s why I founded The Justice Initiative CIC. We conduct pre-matter and post-matter casework, applying medical forensic analysis to investigate complex and perplexing health anomalies where parents feel they have been wrongfully ordered and accused of having harmed their children. This free and impartial service (still in infancy) offers access to pro bono experts across all disciplines, ready to collaborate and challenge continuing systemic failings within applied sectors to prevent detrimental harm and further systemic abuses. Janet advises other women looking to enter her professional sector: “You cannot change the past, no matter how hard you try; accept what has happened, then learn from these failings to prepare for a better tomorrow. The A “ ”
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