Thank you for visiting my fundraising page. I am running the Edinburgh half marathon on Sunday 5 April for the Lothian Autistic Society.

My brother Kyle was diagnosed with autism when he was two-and-a-half years old. Since then, the Lothian Autistic Society (LAS) has been a great help and the whole family have benefited from their support.

Kyle has just turned 13 and enjoys a range of services provided by the LAS. These include playscheme during the school break and activity holidays. This allows my mum to have a well-needed break, as looking after Kyle can be very hard work. My mum now also has the support of other parents and has made many friends.

Please sponsor me and help support this great charity, which has helped my family so much.

MUST BEAT THE BUS

Thank you everyone for your donations!

More about autism

Latest research indicates that between 5 and 7 in 1000 children may be affected by an Autistic Spectrum Conditions.  This may be identified at birth or during infancy, but is a life-long condition.

Autistic Spectrum Condition is considered to be a neuro-biological condition of the brain that impacts upon development, influencing an individual’s capacity to interact with the world around them and ability to understand situations as they occur. Autistic Spectrum Conditions are not culture specific; they are found in all societies around the world.

More about how the Lothian Autistic Society helps:

Provide services

autism specific playschemes within the age range 5 – 16 years (up to 18 if in full-time education), which recognise equality of opportunity and enable children on the autism spectrum to flourish as individuals and not have to conform to social pressures;

respite services, facilitated and developed in liaison with local social work departments, to allow families to participate in community life and assist children to stay in their families;

opportunities for parent to parent support and carers via monthly meetings, social events, via regular and informative e-mail bulletins and electronic newsletters;

autism-free days for siblings of children who have an ASC

activity trips to residential centres in the October school holiday break;

social clubs;

a comprehensive information and resource service for families and carers and professionals

fundraising activities to provide resources for the expansion and improvement of services;

Promote awareness

provide autism-specific training for a variety of client groups to raise awareness of ASC, improve standards of care and enable inclusion;

build, develop and strengthen partnership working to ensure best practice and quality of care and broaden opportunities for funding partnerships and services;

promote inclusion by developing group and social skills, which support integration into mainstream activities and settings.

If you would like any more information regarding the Lothian Autistic Society please refer to the website www.lothianautistic.org