Special clothing line launched by woman from Daventry village

They are sold in places from supermarkets up to high-end stores.

But what if your child’s needs are different? If they have a feeding tube, limited movement, or may take off their clothes if irritated by them regular clothes may not be suitable.

A woman from Welton has taken up the challenge.

Lyn Worrall has designed her own range of clothing for children with additional needs, and her company which sells them online – Brothers and Sisters – was launched on Monday.

They design, make and sell clothes for children with a variety of needs – if they have a feeding tube, or limited movement, or are sensitive to things like labels.

In 2012 Lyn and her husband Barney’s son Jago suffered brain injuries in an accident in which he nearly drowned.

Lyn said: “When we were looking for clothes of Jago, things that wouldn’t irritate him as he sat in them, or had access for his feeding tube, we discovered the choices weren’t great. I felt Jago wasn’t getting the same level of quality, so I decided to do something about it.

“All my bodysuits are organic soft cotton, without stitched in labels – we print them onto the garment – so there’s nothing to irritate the children wearing them, or make them want to take them off which can happen.

“They’re suitable for children with brain injuries, autism or sensory perception disorder. They’re also designed with tube feeding in mind. But the most important thing is that they don’t look any different from other children’s clothes. When they are wearing them the suits look like a T-shirt.

“When I was looking for clothes for Jago I found they all seemed to look different in some way from regular clothes – why should Jago have to make do when his brothers don’t?

“So I started designing these suits so they would not look like they’re wearing anything other than a normal T-shirt. Our other priority was the website we sell them on.

“Other websites selling clothes in this category can feel dated, or quite clinical. Or when the item arrives the packaging might not be great.

“I want parents and children to feel good when their clothes arrive, and to enjoy using our website.

“We designed our website to be like any other online clothes retailer – there’s a feel to it like high street brands such as Zara or Boden.

“We wanted it to be a quality shopping experience, no different from other shops.

“Why should families with children with additional needs miss out on the experience of enjoying shopping for nice clothes, and the excitement of opening the parcel when it arrives?

“Why should children with additional needs make do with a poor choice of styles of clothes that look different from what their siblings or friends wear?

“That’s why we called the company Brothers and Sisters, because we wanted Jago to have the same experiences as his brothers.”

A key thing for Lyn has been making sure parents shopping on her site do not feel like they have to go to a second-class place to get the items they need.

She said: “If you have to go to a website that’s not very inspiring to buy clothes that look a bit utilitarian for your child, that only makes you feel like your child is ‘different’ or that you are excluded from the type of experience other parents have.

“The same goes for people buying clothes as presents for children. It’s not very nice to buy a present from a site that doesn’t feel very modern and light. Launching this company is about giving those parents a better experience, so they do not feel like they’re on a specialist website or that they’re missing out.”

Lyn and Bothers and Sisters are already in talks with some high street names to see if her range of clothes can be sold through them as well.

Lyn said: “It would be a great statement that parents like me can go into a store, or onto a website, and buy clothes for all their children including ones with additional needs.

“It would be great for the parents, children and their siblings, and it would be great for others to see that as well.”

Brothers and Sisters clothing can be found online at www.brothersandsisterslondon.com.