Littlehampton student cheats death to pass GCSEs

Chesney Jenner was left with brain damage after falling 17ft through the roof of Littlehampton Community School in May, 2004, when he was aged just 13. He spent four months in hospital, much of it in a critical condition.

Jayne Wilson, head teacher at Littlehampton Community School, said: "Chesney had a horrific accident, was on a life support machine and had a slow phased reintegration back to school."

"He gained two "C" grades, two "D" grades and three "E" grades and we are particularly proud of his achievements. "

His mum, Tina, said she was very proud of her son for passing all of his GCSEs, despite having to miss many months of lessons while he made his slow recovery. "He was off school for about a year and then he was re-introduced gradually, starting off with just an hour a day.

"All the way up to when he did his exams, he was still missing the first five minutes at the beginning and end of lessons, so that he didn't get knocked down in the rush!

"The school have been fantastic in terms of accommodating his needs. They moved all of his lessons downstairs, for example."

Chesney fell through a sky-light on the flat roof of the single storey building on May 8, 2004. His fast-thinking friend, Jason Jezzard, who was nine at the time, jumped through after him and used his mobile phone to call the emergency services and TIna.

She said: "They had climbed up onto the roof to get a ball, and the next thing I know I got a call telling me he wasn't breathing."

"It was a Saturday, so the school was closed. We had to climb over the fence to get to him."

During the first hours after his accident, Chesney needed to be resuscitated four times.

Tina said: "He has done so well, the only way you would know that anything had happened is by the tracheotomy scar.

"He lives a normal life as normal can be, and just has to be careful with certain things, like riding a bike and fairground rides, things that you and me would take for granted."

Chesney plans to continue his education at Chichester College, where he will train as a plumber from September.