22/01/2018 London News

Thursday. That's

Welcome to BBC London News.

I'm Alpa Patel.

A study seen by the BBC

shows that a powerful drug

to treat epilepsy

could harm families for generations.

Karen Buck from Stanmore

in Northwest London didn't know

taking sodium valproate

during pregnancy would cause severe

birth defects in her now

19 year old daughter.

Tarah Welsh has been

speaking to her.

You're going to swallow that.

Bridget is 19 but still plays with

some of the toys she had as a baby.

She cannot go to the toilet, she

cannot walk, she cannot talk.

When

Karen was pregnant with her, she was

prescribed a high dosage of the drug

sodium valproate. She has epilepsy,

and the pills were meant to control

the seizures. But the powerful

chemicals that protected her health

damaged her daughter's. Around

20,000 children in the UK are

believed to have the tool valproate

syndrome after being exposed to

sodium valproate in the womb. They

have an increased risk of cleft

palate and more prone to spina

bifida, or neural defects. The risks

of taking the drug in pregnancy have

been known since the 70s, the

government regulates what

information is given to patients and

it chose not reveal this. In a

statement it told us

yet many women say they still are

not aware of the risks, particularly

alarming in light of new findings.

While researching the film, we spoke

with several families who suspect

sodium valproate is somehow not just

harming their children but their

grandchildren, too. Until now, those

suspicions have not been deemed

credible but we have obtained the

results of a major scientific

project in South Korea, which

actually supports the idea that the

drug can harm successive

generations. The study found

autistic like behaviour in the

grandchildren and

great-grandchildren of mice that

were injected with sodium valproate

while pregnant.

That was the first

bit of evidence that we had in any

species that this could be carried

onto the next generation.

For the

family of Bridget, the idea that the

harm could on for generations is a

thought almost too difficult to

bear.

And there's more of that story

in tonight's Inside Out programme

programme at 7.30 on BBC1.

And anyone with concerns

about their medication should

consult their doctor before making

any changes

Around 150 children's centres

in London have not been inspected

by Ofsted for more than five years.

The Government told inspectors

to temporarily suspend

inspections in 2015.

One charity says it's left tens

of thousands of parents

with no idea of how good

their local centre is.

Here's our Education

Reporter, Marc Ashdown.

For babies and toddlers,

it's a chance to play.

For parents, a chance to socialise,

and get free support

from health workers.

Two years ago, Alca lost her mother

just before giving birth to her son,

and was heading towards depression.

If the centres weren't here to help

me, and my health visitor as well,

because there was one consistent

person throughout

to be able to help me,

erm, I'm not sure how

we would have coped.

And I don't think we

would coped very well.

These centres are a lifeline.

There are 3,000 or so children's

centres across England,

and like schools, Ofsted inspects

them for safety and quality.

But in 2015, the government decided

to consult over their future,

and told inspectors

to stop inspecting.

The charity Action For Children says

two years on,

some 969 centres due

an inspection haven't had one,

that's 40% of the total.

In that time, councils have invested

£1.4 billion in children's centres,

but it's not clear how well that

money has been spent.

In London, about 150

centres are affected.

There are now concerns

over their futures.

What it means, of course,

is that with local authorities

under pressure for cash,

if those centres aren't inspected,

they're sort of invisible.

And what that means is,

it's much easier to close them.

It gives him a chance

to interact with others,

myself a chance to interact

with others,

and get him weighed

and see how he's doing.

I had postnatal depression

with both my children.

So it gives me some oomph to get out

of the house,

and also get her to

have some company.

We come in every Monday.

So, if this went, I'd

have nowhere to go.

Ofsted confirmed the inspections

are still suspended,

but the Department for Education

said robust and regular partial

inspections do still take place.

The influential Board of Deputies

of British Jews

Is to write to senior legal figures,

calling on them to sack the Senior

Coroner for Inner North London.

It's after concerns

within the Jewish and Muslim

communities about the way she failed

to respect the wishes of families

who wanted to bury relatives

as soon as possible.

Now just 18 months ago British Ice

Dancing Champion Penny Coomes

shattered her knee in eight places

during a training exercise.

The athlete from Maidenhead was told

she might never compete again.

But now Penny is preparing

to compete at the Winter Olympics

in South Korea next month.

Sara Orchard has more

Life in Michigan for the number one

ice dancing couple of Team GB. They

moved to the States to live just

three minutes from the rink where

they train.

It was a big move and a

big change moving here because all

of a sudden, we are around other

couples that we compete against,

training with competitors, if

anything, we make each other better

and stronger.

They have flown the

flag for Team GB for the last two

Winter Olympics and risen up the

world rankings but in June, 2016, a

third Olympic Games looked like it

would not happen.

I obliterated my

kneecap. No other way to put it. I

messed it up good and proper. I had

a fall in practice, fluke accident,

like that, I am on the floor, with

half my kneecap up here and the

other half down there.

Any had

shattered her knee in eight places

and was told she may not skate

again. After surgery and expensive

rehab, she return to competitive

action in August and they have

qualified to Pyeongchang.

We have

come through so much but the best

bit is yet to come.

It is just so

emotional because... This has always

been my goal commune, when we set

out it was always, let's do three

Olympic Games and Pyeongchang was

always, let's be the best air. Being

an Olympian is what I am most proud

of, and the moments I look back in

my life and look back and love the

most. I just want to take it all in.

-- lets be the best we can be.

I

want to pat myself on the back and

be, yet, I have earned this.

Now the weather with Kate Kinsella.

After a pretty cold weekend, things

have changed overnight, with the

temperature rising, it is feeling a

lot milder today, we have seen some

sunshine, a little bit of cloud here

and there, also a few notes of

spring rising. Saying mild, further

bright spells, mild air brings with

it a bit of moisture, should stay

dry, quite a bit of cloud, breaking

up, thinning, getting sunny spells

throughout, and bright spells as

well, temperatures reaching nine,

even 10 degrees. In double figures.

Overnight tonight, might be chilly

to start with but gradually, things

will start to warm up, or at least

get a little milder. Cloud moving in

from the West and the wind

strengthening by dawn, rain arrives,

minimum temperature is not dropping

to four, six and seven Celsius.

Another mild start tomorrow, quite a

wet one, wind strengthening the

whole time. Rain in the afternoon

breaking up, one or two showers,

also brighter spells. Yes, it will

be breezy, despite that, look at the

temperature, 13 Celsius, billing

mild as we had through Tuesday

afternoon. The wind will strengthen,

as we head into Wednesday, wet and

windy. Something a bit fresher and a

bit brighter for Thursday.

The

weather is not bad at all!

That's about it from me.

Riz Lateef will be here

with our 6:30 evening programme.

But for now, from us all,

a very good afternoon.