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Katie Price has opened up about her fears that her son, Harvey, could face being sectioned in the future.
Speaking in the BBC One documentary, Katie Price: Harvey and Me, the 42-year-old former glamour model discusses her ongoing search for a residential college for Harvey to attend when he turns 18.
This would mean that Harvey would have access to full-time care and could learn to live more independently and build on his social skills, while still having the option to return home at weekends if he wants to.
However, in the documentary, Price explains that if she doesn’t find a suitable college, her local authority will choose one for her based on where meets his needs within their budget.
Speaking to a close friend of hers in the documentary, Price learns how, if the college chosen for Harvey turns out to be unsuitable, the local authority can forcibly take Harvey away if they feel he’s a risk to himself and others and he could end up in a mental health unit or an Assessment and Treatment Unit.
“Once they’re in there, it’s really difficult to get them out, so they’ve been sectioned,” the friend tells Price.
Price initially responds by explaining that she feels “comfy” knowing that it wouldn’t get that far for Harvey but also admits that he has a history of self-harm.
Later in the documentary, Price is seen reflecting on the conversation and reading up on children with health conditions similar to Harvey’s who have been sectioned.
“Hearing some stories about how some people have been sectioned is awful,” she says. “I can see they’ve got similarities to what Harv’s like. And they were scared.”
Price goes on to read out some other people’s experiences and compares their symptoms to Harvey’s, finding out that the average time a patient would spend in an in-patient psychiatric ward.
“Imagine Harvey being sectioned,” she continues. “Put in a room. He wouldn’t cope. That would finish anyone off, surely.”
Price is later seen visiting a woman named Isabel and her son, Matthew, who has health issues similar to Harvey’s and was sectioned in 2015 at the age of 15.
“When your child is sectioned, it’s like you lose all your rights as a parent,” Isabel tells Price.
It was through the help of a specialist psychiatrist that Isabel was able to bring her son home.
Isabel advised Price to look for colleges further away from home, which she is then shown doing in the documentary.
Reflecting on the conversation on the way home, Price says: “It was shocking to know that that human being sitting next to me has experience that, something that I could maybe experience with Harvey, just because of the way the system works.”
The documentary concludes by revealing that Price has found a suitable college for Harvey called National Star, which could require up to £350,000 worth of funding from her local authority. Price will find out if her application for Harvey has been successful in March.
Katie Price: Harvey and Me airs on BBC One on Monday 25 January at 8.30pm.
If you have been affected by any issues mentioned in this article, you can contact The Samaritans for free on 116 123 or any of the following mental health organisations:
nhs.uk/livewell/mentalhealth
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