John Franklin, chairman of the Fathers' Club

by Alan Smith

Familes with autistic children face losing a valuable support service, unless a white knight with some money can be found quickly.

The Kent Autistic Trust is set to lose its family support officers at the end of October, when the charity’s current funding runs out.

For the past three years, the trust’s dedicated family support officers, Jo Blamires and Des Walker, have been funded via a Big Lottery grant, but their application for renewed funding this year has been rejected amid the pressure of competing good causes.

An application to Children In Need has similarly been refused.

John Franklin, chairman of the Fathers’ Club that runs regular cinema showings for families with autistic children in the Maidstone area, said the loss of the support service would be a disaster for many families across Kent.

He said: "I have already received scores of emails from club members and others, all deeply concerned about the potential loss of this service."

The family support officers, who are in addition to the trust’s main role of providing respite care for autistic families, have been meeting an increasing case load over the past years. The officers provide individual personal advice to families, help set up support groups, and provide training for employers and others to understand the implications of autism.

There are 2,400 families on their books across Kent and the figure has been growing at the rate of about 370 families a year.

The service costs about £85,000 a year to run, with the support workers making an average of 40 family visits a month, running eight support groups and training for about 400 people a year.

Mr Franklin said: "Come October, there will be a tsunami of epic proportions for those living with autism in their families, if this service ends.

"I am deeply conscious of what it means for a family to have their support – from the diagnosis stage on through life."

The trust has applied to both KCC and Medway Council for help in filling the gap left by the lottery funding, but so far without success.

Mr Franklin has launched a campaign in their support and is appealing for all families who have benefited from the service, or medical professionals who value the service, to contact him with their tributes, so they can be collated into a report to influence potential funders.

Email john_e_franklin@ hotmail.com or call him on 01474 832083.

Further information from www.kentautistic.com