0:00:08 > 0:00:11Charlie was, to me, perfect.
0:00:13 > 0:00:15He's got two grown-up sisters,
0:00:15 > 0:00:18so he was the centre of attention all the time.
0:00:18 > 0:00:22He was very bubbly. He was alive, you know.
0:00:23 > 0:00:26We was going to see his grandma and grandad in Spain.
0:00:26 > 0:00:30We woke up in the morning. Charlie said he wanted to go
0:00:30 > 0:00:31and see his great-nan.
0:00:31 > 0:00:34When I went out, he was floating in the pool...
0:00:36 > 0:00:42..so I screamed and jumped in.
0:00:44 > 0:00:47Just praying for them not to take him.
0:00:48 > 0:00:51I know how suddenly life can change.
0:00:51 > 0:00:56How one moment everything's fine and the next moment, it's not.
0:00:57 > 0:01:01Back in 2006, I was in a very high-speed,
0:01:01 > 0:01:04and subsequently very highly publicised car crash.
0:01:04 > 0:01:08I was pulled from the wreckage with extensive brain injuries.
0:01:08 > 0:01:11The road to recovery was, for me, long and tough,
0:01:11 > 0:01:14but it was a lot tougher for my family.
0:01:14 > 0:01:17I've been extremely lucky - some brain injuries can leave
0:01:17 > 0:01:22a person needing constant care and long-term rehabilitation.
0:01:22 > 0:01:26Imagine how much worse that is when it happens to a child.
0:01:29 > 0:01:32He was blue, he wasn't breathing.
0:01:32 > 0:01:35We pulled into accident and emergency.
0:01:35 > 0:01:37I just remember jumping out and screaming,
0:01:37 > 0:01:39"Someone help my baby."
0:01:39 > 0:01:42Charlie was in a coma for a week and a half.
0:01:42 > 0:01:45His brain had been starved of oxygen by the accident,
0:01:45 > 0:01:50meaning nobody could be sure how he would respond when he came round.
0:01:50 > 0:01:54I sat and read to him, played his favourite songs
0:01:54 > 0:01:59and then there's just no response. Really hard.
0:01:59 > 0:02:02That was Charlie, laying in the bed,
0:02:02 > 0:02:05one eye one way, one the other, you know.
0:02:05 > 0:02:09It was now clear that Charlie had sustained serious brain injuries.
0:02:09 > 0:02:15We didn't know if he'd ever speak or eat or talk or anything.
0:02:15 > 0:02:17You know, we just didn't know,
0:02:17 > 0:02:21nobody could give you any answers, and it was really, really lonely.
0:02:23 > 0:02:26Thankfully, there is a charity dedicated to helping
0:02:26 > 0:02:30families like Anne Marie's. It's called The Children's Trust
0:02:30 > 0:02:34and it's the UK's leading charity for children with brain injuries.
0:02:36 > 0:02:39I've supported The Children's Trust for years as Vice President -
0:02:39 > 0:02:42and I've seen how this charity helps
0:02:42 > 0:02:46young people with really complex health needs
0:02:46 > 0:02:48rebuild their lives.
0:02:48 > 0:02:52On behalf of The Children's Trust, I'm asking you to help these kids
0:02:52 > 0:02:56and their families have the best life possible.
0:02:57 > 0:03:00At The Children's Trust specialist rehabilitation centre
0:03:00 > 0:03:02in Tadworth, Surrey,
0:03:02 > 0:03:05they help children make the best recovery they can
0:03:05 > 0:03:07by offering everything from physio
0:03:07 > 0:03:10and hydrotherapy, to speech and language therapy.
0:03:12 > 0:03:15The charity also aids children's psychological recovery
0:03:15 > 0:03:17through music and play.
0:03:19 > 0:03:22When Anne-Marie heard about the Children's Trust centre,
0:03:22 > 0:03:25she was keen for Charlie to come and stay.
0:03:25 > 0:03:27When he first came to The Children's Trust,
0:03:27 > 0:03:33he didn't like being handled, and used to cry constantly.
0:03:33 > 0:03:39They've worked very hard, especially Belinda, with his physio.
0:03:39 > 0:03:44She's amazing, she's got him standing.
0:03:44 > 0:03:48If Belinda's put him in a different position, she'll teach me
0:03:48 > 0:03:51how to do the physio with him.
0:03:51 > 0:03:55Like Charlie, many children who visit The Children's Trust
0:03:55 > 0:03:58need lifelong care as a result of their brain injury.
0:03:58 > 0:04:02So preparing the whole family for life once they leave
0:04:02 > 0:04:06is also a key part of what goes on here.
0:04:06 > 0:04:08The Children's Trust is an amazing place.
0:04:08 > 0:04:13I've learned a lot so when we go home, we'll be OK.
0:04:19 > 0:04:22THe Children's Trust really makes a difference.
0:04:22 > 0:04:26What's so valuable about this place is the concentration
0:04:26 > 0:04:30of passionate, caring experts in childhood brain injury,
0:04:30 > 0:04:34all under one roof. The greatest research concentration
0:04:34 > 0:04:37anywhere in the country, and that is a tremendous reassurance
0:04:37 > 0:04:41for families when they're in shock,
0:04:41 > 0:04:46and trying to come to terms with a huge change in their lives.
0:04:46 > 0:04:52Vic Beauvoir has taken care of his grandson, Tom, for most of his life.
0:04:52 > 0:04:56Three years ago, he received some devastating news.
0:04:56 > 0:04:58My daughter phoned up.
0:04:58 > 0:05:01In the background, I could hear a high powered engine
0:05:01 > 0:05:04and sirens and things and she said, "Dad, you've got to come quick.
0:05:04 > 0:05:10"Tom's had a serious accident and they don't expect him to survive."
0:05:10 > 0:05:15Tom had a major brain injury and spent several hours in surgery.
0:05:15 > 0:05:19Afterwards, the surgeon told them to prepare for the worst.
0:05:19 > 0:05:22Just thought, "Oh, my God, please don't die, Tom.
0:05:22 > 0:05:25"This is not real, this is not going to happen,
0:05:25 > 0:05:26"please don't let it happen."
0:05:26 > 0:05:29Things were looking desperate for Tom, who lay in a coma,
0:05:29 > 0:05:33until a few weeks later, when they noticed some movement.
0:05:33 > 0:05:34Oh, I couldn't believe it.
0:05:34 > 0:05:36I thought, "God, he's going to survive",
0:05:36 > 0:05:39but then you don't know whether he's blind
0:05:39 > 0:05:41or if he's ever going to speak again,
0:05:41 > 0:05:45or be able to swallow or he's going to be completely, you know,
0:05:45 > 0:05:47just completely as he is on the bed.
0:05:47 > 0:05:50You know, Tom, but not Tom.
0:05:50 > 0:05:54Tom couldn't speak, so they handed him his mobile phone
0:05:54 > 0:05:56and he began to type.
0:05:56 > 0:05:59I could see in the darkness the Blackberry and it went,
0:05:59 > 0:06:03"Grandad, you're snoring", you know, I thought, God, you know,
0:06:03 > 0:06:05so I thought, "All right, Tom," you know, sort of thing.
0:06:05 > 0:06:07I just wanted to be able to try and get better,
0:06:07 > 0:06:12and stop being in the bed all the time just laying there doing nothing.
0:06:12 > 0:06:14Literally nothing.
0:06:15 > 0:06:19Tom came to the National Rehab Centre weighing only five stone.
0:06:19 > 0:06:22But it wasn't long before he began to reap
0:06:22 > 0:06:26the benefits of what the dedicated staff here had to offer.
0:06:26 > 0:06:30Once I started to see improvement, I was getting confident
0:06:30 > 0:06:32and thinking, why can't anything else get better?
0:06:32 > 0:06:36I remember the first time I started walking again, with my physio,
0:06:36 > 0:06:39I thought she was helping me and then I looked down
0:06:39 > 0:06:42and she was not helping me at all and I just couldn't believe it,
0:06:42 > 0:06:43I was just too happy,
0:06:43 > 0:06:46it felt like I was walking through the air or something.
0:06:46 > 0:06:50After lots of hard work and sheer determination,
0:06:50 > 0:06:54Tom walked out of The Children's Trust on his own two feet,
0:06:54 > 0:06:56a transformed boy.
0:06:56 > 0:07:00Some of the staff were actually in tears. I was close to it,
0:07:00 > 0:07:03and it was just one of the best days, really.
0:07:03 > 0:07:05They've definitely given me back my life.
0:07:05 > 0:07:08I didn't think I'd be able to do anything like this.
0:07:08 > 0:07:11Everything I thought I wouldn't be able to do, I'm doing
0:07:11 > 0:07:14because of The Children's Trust, so they were a big help.
0:07:15 > 0:07:17I think life would have been completely different
0:07:17 > 0:07:22without the Children's Trust. Thank you is never going to be enough.
0:07:23 > 0:07:26It is hard to describe just how huge a difference this place has made
0:07:26 > 0:07:31to children like Tom and Charlie, and hundreds of others.
0:07:31 > 0:07:34But there are many more children with serious brain injuries
0:07:34 > 0:07:37that the Trust would like to be able to help.
0:07:37 > 0:07:39And this is where you come in!
0:07:39 > 0:07:42Because I'm asking you to donate now
0:07:42 > 0:07:47to this life-changing cause and help provide more brain injury experts
0:07:47 > 0:07:52to work with children and their families across the UK.
0:07:52 > 0:07:53Please go to the website...
0:07:56 > 0:07:58..where you can donate.
0:07:58 > 0:08:01If you haven't got internet access, please call.
0:08:03 > 0:08:06And if you can't get through the first time,
0:08:06 > 0:08:07please keep trying.
0:08:07 > 0:08:10Telephone calls are free from most landlines.
0:08:10 > 0:08:14Some networks and mobile operators will charge for these calls.
0:08:14 > 0:08:18You can also donate £10 by texting...
0:08:18 > 0:08:23Texts cost £10 plus your standard network message charge
0:08:23 > 0:08:26and the whole £10 goes to the Children's Trust.
0:08:26 > 0:08:28Full terms and conditions can be found
0:08:28 > 0:08:31at www.bbc.co.uk/lifeline.
0:08:31 > 0:08:34Or if you'd like to post a donation, please make your cheque
0:08:34 > 0:08:36payable to the Children's Trust
0:08:36 > 0:08:39and send it to Freepost, BBC Lifeline Appeal,
0:08:39 > 0:08:42writing "Children's Trust" on the back of the envelope.
0:08:42 > 0:08:45And if you want the charity to claim Gift Aid on your donation,
0:08:45 > 0:08:48please include an e-mail or postal address
0:08:48 > 0:08:50so that they can send you a Gift Aid form.
0:08:50 > 0:08:52Thank you.