Head injury student a little better

Aug 4 2008 by Neil Mckay, The Journal

A STUDENT found unconscious at the foot of concrete steps near his university accommodation is making a slow recovery.

Nine months after Peter Wake, 20, was found in Durham with a fractured skull, doctors are unable to say how complete his recovery will be.

Friends and family have posted details of his progress on the internet.

The history student and keen rower spent Christmas and New Year in a coma in the intensive care unit at Newcastle General Hospital after being found with a fractured skull following a night out.

At first police investigators suspected he may have been the victim of an attack after leaving The Love Shack nightspot in Durham’s Walkergate. But they later concluded his fall was accidental.

He was found by a woman walking her dog, lying comatose in the rain at the foot of steps off Grape Lane, near to the Elm Tree pub in Crossgate, Durham, at 7.20am on Wednesday, November 21. He was only 30 metres from his rented accommodation in the city’s Allergate.

In February, he was moved south to a hospital in Putney, closer to his parents Anne and Phil, who live in New Malden, Surrey.

His family said: “He remains minimally conscious, awake by day and asleep at night. Although he can see and hear, Pete is still unable to communicate and, while he can move a little, he remains unable to do anything for himself.” But they added: “Pete’s left eye, which has been only partially open for some time, is now much improved. It is reacting more normally and seems to be getting better daily. Peter has received his new, individually tailored wheelchair, ideal for warm summer afternoons in the hospital garden.

“Since his hospitalisation we have been fortunate to enjoy such an entertaining crowd of visitors from among Pete’s friends and supporters. Thank you all.”

They described Peter, who was studying ancient, medieval and modern history, as “a much loved and valued member of St John’s College, Durham University”. The Peter Wake Trust was established by family and friends in February “to act as a focus for donations from friends and well-wishers who wish to help Peter.” It has its own website, www. peterwake.org.uk