The Monster at Night: a poem about the struggles of a disabled child

Rosie R's latest poem tells the story of a disabled boy's struggle to ask for help while living in an abusive household

February 18, 2025 in Children

Photo by AdobeStock/my_stock

by Rosie R.

Children with disabilities are the most vulnerable children whom we work with. Due to their struggles and impairments, often both of a cognitive and a physical nature, they need to rely on carers who can meet all their needs, and also keep them safe.

This is an account where a young person in a wheelchair was frightened of his mother’s boyfriend, and had no means of keeping himself safe.

As social workers working with this very vulnerable group, we need to be creative to obtain the voice of the chil, from others who know them, since so many of our most vulnerable children also have limited verbal communication, and therefore the possibilities of sharing their worries are significantly reduced.

Photo by Mikael Damkier/AdobeStock

Celebrate those who’ve inspired you

Photo by Daniel Laflor/peopleimages.com/ AdobeStock

Do you have a colleague, mentor, or social work figure you can’t help but gush about?

Our My Brilliant Colleague series invites you to celebrate anyone within social work who has inspired you – whether current or former colleagues, managers, students, lecturers, mentors or prominent past or present sector figures whom you have admired from afar.

Nominate your colleague or social work inspiration by filling in our nominations form with a few paragraphs (100-250 words) explaining how and why the person has inspired you.

*Please note that, despite the need to provide your name and role, you or the nominee can be anonymous in the published entry*

If you have any questions, email our community journalist, Anastasia Koutsounia, at anastasia.koutsounia@markallengroup.com

child protection, disabled children, domestic abuse, safeguarding disabled children, social work poetry