Parents of autistic children urged to use support schemes

Parents of autistic children have been urged to make use of
befriending and support schemes in order to combat any isolation
caused by the condition, writes Katie
Leason.

The advice from the National Autistic Society came in response
to reports that a mother in Leicester had advertised for children
to come and play with her autistic son, offering them £5 an
hour to do so.

Angela Finne, the society’s locality manager for the
Leicester area, said that parents of children with autistic
spectrum disorder often felt isolated following diagnosis and would
be desperate to seek help and “get whatever support they can for
their child”.

She suggested that parents use befriending and support
programmes such as ‘early bird’ schemes, which advise parents soon
after their child is diagnosed, and ‘jigsaw’ schemes, where
children and parents get together on a monthly basis. But she
warned that provision of such schemes was “patchy” due to
insufficient funding.

“I would recommend people use existing resources and seek
professional help and support,” she said. “However resources are
not always available and it can be difficult for parents to find
the support the need for their children and get respite.”