Table 1
Participant Biographical Details.
| JOSH |
|---|
| Josh, 12 years old, was born with a cleft palate. He perceived that he sounded different from peers because of his cleft palate; however, speech difficulties were not overly apparent to the researcher during the interview. Josh described himself as very confident and well-liked by peers. Josh chose to attend a different secondary school from his older sibling so that he could attend the same school as several pre-existing friends. He also had two younger siblings. |
| ETHAN |
| Ethan, 11 years old, was born with visible cleft lip and palate (which affected his speech) and additional congenital health difficulties, including renal problems. Ethan reported two significant episodes of bullying (one at primary school, one at secondary school). Ethan had one younger sibling (without a CL/P). |
| HARRY |
| Harry, 11 years old, was born with a visible cleft lip and palate, which affected his speech. Harry’s family relocated shortly prior to his transition to secondary school; therefore, he started secondary school without any of his peers from primary school. |
| GEORGE |
| George, 11 years old, was born with a sub-mucous cleft palate. He described having speech difficulties that much improved following surgery and speech and language therapy. George perceived his cleft palate to be largely invisible to others, except when attempting to eat/drink certain foods (e.g., ice cream and milkshakes). George had an older sister (without a CL/P), who attended the same secondary school as him. As part of the school transition process, George and his school peers read Wonder, a children’s novel about visible facial difference by Raquel Jaramillo (Palacio, 2012). |
| RUBY |
| Ruby, aged 11, was the only female in the sample. Ruby had a visible cleft lip and palate and described feeling self-conscious about her appearance as a result. Ruby described several experiences of appearance-related bullying throughout primary and secondary school. She reported receiving previous psychological input from her local cleft service for pre-operative anxiety, which she described as beneficial. Ruby had two younger brothers (without a CL/P). |
| TYLER |
| Tyler, aged 12, was born with a visible cleft lip and palate. In preparing to transition to secondary school, Tyler attended a mainstream “summer camp” at his new secondary school. In addition, he also attended a school transition preparation group for people with CL/P run by his local cleft psychology service. At the point of interview, Tyler had been at his secondary school for seven months. |