PARENTS of other autistic children in Ilkley have expressed their support for the Ilkley Gazette's campaign to raise £5,000 for three-year-old Robert Sime.

The cash will be used for a specific educational programme to help Robert develop communication skills and be given the chance to go to a mainstream school.

The intensive one-to-one Lovaas programme costs around £18,000 a year and the Gazette Robert's Ray of Hope campaign, launched in conjunction with the Ilkley and District Round Table, is hoping to raise the funds to continue the treatment.

The mother of another autistic boy in Ilkley who did not want to be named, said: "I am pleased that the Ilkley Gazette along with the Round Table have launched the campaign and hope that it will be well supported by your readers. I hope that you can raise reader's awareness of autism and, in the process, help Robert."

She added: "When my son was assessed as autistic I thought there was no hope. Two years on my son is a bright, lively and happy little boy who will go to a mainstream school."

She was anxious to point out that children diagnosed as Autistic are not all the same and treatment needed to be tailored to each individual child.

"Not all children with autism need such intensive or expensive therapy. It is important to acknowledge that the Lovaas technique is one of many therapies available. It is working for Robert but may not be appropriate for others," she said.

Robert's Lovaas Treatment - a technique pioneered by Professor Ivor Lovaas in the United States - has seen the youngster make stunning progress since it began. His parents discovered the appropriate treatment after months of research.

Without the special treatment Robert may not develop his communication skills well enough to join his brother, Jonathan, at All Saints First School.

Their mother, Lorraine Sime, said: "We are striving towards him going to a mainstream school. Without this treatment he would probably have to go to a special school."

Mrs Sime said since the appeal was launched a week ago: "A lady knocked at the door this week and told me she had won £10 on the Lottery and wanted to donate it to Robert's appeal."

The Ilkley and District Round Table is planning a range of fundraising events for Robert. Tablers will be canoeing along the Leeds-Liverpool Canal this summer to raise money.

The National Autistic Society Helpline is open every day from 10am to 12 noon. Telephone 0171 9033 555 or write to National Autistic Society, 393 City Road, London, EC1V 1NE.

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