Dr Rob Spaull

Dr Robert Spaull is a Consultant Paediatric Neurologist and expert witness at Bristol Royal Hospital for Children, University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust, where he has been practising as a consultant since 2025. His principal areas of expertise include complex movement disorders, epilepsy, neurogenetics, neonatal neurology and acquired brain injury, with particular experience in the assessment and management of children with cerebral palsy, complex neurodevelopmental disorders and rare neurological diseases.

His clinical practice encompasses the diagnosis and treatment of children with a broad range of complex neurological conditions, including epilepsy, dystonia, developmental delay, hypoxic ischaemic encephalopathy, neurometabolic and neurotransmitter disorders, and inflammatory neurological disease. He is closely involved in the management of children requiring advanced therapies for movement disorders, including intrathecal baclofen, botulinum toxin and deep brain stimulation, and leads the South West paediatric complex epilepsy service while contributing to the regional epilepsy surgery programme. His work also includes the assessment and long-term management of children with neonatal neurological disorders, spasticity and tone abnormalities, gait disorders and the neurological consequences of brain injury.

Alongside his clinical practice, Dr Spaull's academic research in movement disorders, neurogenetics and brain injury following preterm birth strengthens his expertise in complex paediatric neurology. He has also held national leadership roles within the British Paediatric Neurology Association and the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, reflecting his recognised standing within the specialty. 

Dr Robert Spaull has undertaken medico-legal work since 2025, providing independent expert opinion in clinical negligence claims involving children and young people with neurological disorders. He prepares screening, breach of duty, causation, and condition and prognosis reports, offering clear, evidence-based opinions on complex paediatric neurological issues. His medico-legal instructions commonly relate to acquired brain injury, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, movement disorders, neurogenetic conditions and neonatal neurological disorders, together with the neurological consequences of hypoxic ischaemic encephalopathy, meningitis and other complex neurological disease. His active tertiary clinical practice, combined with expertise in advanced movement disorder therapies and complex epilepsy, enables him to provide balanced, specialist opinions that assist solicitors in understanding diagnosis, standards of care, causation and long-term neurological outcomes. 

Dr Spaull's current clinical practice centres on the assessment and management of children with complex neurological disorders, with particular expertise in movement disorders, epilepsy and neurogenetic disease. He spends much of his clinical time diagnosing and treating children with cerebral palsy, dystonia and other movement disorders, including those requiring advanced interventions such as intrathecal baclofen, botulinum toxin and deep brain stimulation. He also undertakes specialist assessment of children with complex epilepsy, including those being considered for epilepsy surgery, alongside the investigation and management of refractory epilepsy and rare seizure disorders.

His practice encompasses the care of infants and children with acquired brain injury, neonatal neurological disorders, hypoxic ischaemic encephalopathy, developmental delay and complex neurodevelopmental conditions. He has particular expertise in neurogenetic, neurometabolic and neurotransmitter disorders, applying detailed clinical assessment and advanced diagnostic investigation to children with rare and complex neurological presentations. In addition, he manages children with spasticity, tone abnormalities and gait disorders, focusing on optimising neurological function and long-term outcomes through multidisciplinary care. His broad tertiary practice enables him to provide comprehensive assessment and ongoing management across the full spectrum of complex paediatric neurological disease. 

Dr Spaull holds a PhD in Paediatric Neurology from the UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health and has authored more than 20 peer-reviewed publications focusing on childhood movement disorders, neurogenetics and brain injury in preterm infants. His research experience is complemented by national leadership roles within the British Paediatric Neurology Association and the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health.