Please help me to speak!
Branson is 5 years old and barely speaks.
Branson is our beautiful son, who was diagnosed with autism and global developmental delay at the age of 3. He lives in Canberra with his mother, Cara, his father, Mark, and his younger brother, Torquil. Torquil is 2.5 years old, is also affected by autism, and has severe language delay with social deficits.
Since Branson’s diagnosis, we have dedicated our lives to researching autism and it's effective therapies and implementing those therapies. The primary therapy that we have used is based on ABA (Applied Behaviour Analysis), which is the only method of teaching that is scientifically proven to improve cognitive, communication, adaptive and social skills in young children with autism. Unfortunately, due to our limited funds, time, and resources, we were only able to deliver approximately half of the recommended hours per week. In addition to ABA therapy, Branson attended an autism-specific early intervention group 2 days/week, participated in therapy recommended by our transdisciplinary team (speech pathologist/occupational therapist/psychologist/early childhood education teacher), and attended a mainstream child care centre with inclusion support. As parents, we have also incorporated therapeutic strategies in every day life, exposing him to learning opportunities multiple times throughout every day. 
Despite 2 years of early intervention, he has not progressed as well as we had hoped. While he is no longer averbal, he barely speaks. Learning language becomes significantly harder from the age of 5 and that is why we need to take action NOW, before it's too late. We have found that the therapy which has had the greatest positive impact on Branson is the ABA therapy. We are therefore seeking assistance to provide the recommended intensive ABA program to ensure that we have done absolutely everything we can to enable Branson to reach his maximal potential and improve his prognosis.
To achieve the goal of providing an intensive ABA program, we would like Branson to attend a specialist school in Sydney. Attending this school will provide the number of ABA therapy hours that is reported in the literature to improve prognosis in children with autism. In our current situation, for Branson to attend the specialist school, he and Mark will have to move to Sydney and Cara and Torquil will have to stay in Canberra. This is because Cara is the sole income earner in the family and, to be able to continue providing for the whole family, she needs to stay in Canberra where her job is secure. Mark is currently the full-time carer for Branson and Torquil but when he moves to Sydney, and Branson has settled into school, he will seek employment. We are therefore seeking financial assistance for Branson's school fees ($46,000 per annum), moving costs, accommodation, and safe transport.
Please help our beautiful boy learn to speak so that he can have the opportunity to communicate with people, be educated, and one day be independent. We have a bright, happy, and intelligent child whose cognitive abilities and personality are being masked by autism.
Please help us to remove the mask and unveil his personality and potential.
Thank you for taking the time to read about our family and what we are trying to achieve for Branson. Please send us a message if you have any suggestions that might help us to reach our goal. If you are happy to share Branson's story with friends/family/colleagues, we would be greatly appreciative.
Mark, Cara, Branson, & Torquil
https://www.facebook.com/branson.atkins
NB: Funds raised will go to Branson’s school fees first. Once we have reached $46,000, the additional funds will be put towards moving costs, safe and reliable transport, and rent for the Sydney property. If we go over our goal, the additional funding will be put towards Branson attending another year at the school in 2017.
