'They're putting our children's lives on the line' Parents of epileptic children call for action

Families whose epileptic children have been denied NHS prescriptions have submitted a handwritten request to the Prime Minister asking for urgent intervention.

The date marks six months since families like Rachel Rankmore and Craig Williams from Cardiff met with the Health Secretary face-to-face at an event held in Westminster.

Six months on, all ten families are still funding private prescriptions for cannabis oil.

Parents Rachel Rankmore and Craig Williams from Cardiff joined other families in Westminster today in a silent protest asking the UK government to take action.

Their son Bailey has severe epilepsy which causes him to have seizures.

He sometimes has 100 seizures a day.

After years of desperation, Bailey's parents felt they had ran out of conventional treatment options and turned to cannabis oil on a private prescription.

They say that since he has been taking cannabis derived oil he is now able to play and have a relationship with his brothers.

Bailey's mum said "he's thriving."

But because they cannot get the oil prescribed on the NHS, they have to find their own way of funding it.

They are among 10 families of children with epilepsy who have been denied NHS prescriptions.

In a statement, the Welsh Government who's in charge of health in Wales said specialist doctors have been allowed to prescribe cannabis-derived products for medicinal use from November 2018, however they are only recommended for use in a very limited number of cases.

But Rachel said cannabis oil is Bailey's lifeline and for her family there is no going back.