Co Armagh mum Jodie tells how charity has brought 'so much joy' to disabled son's life

Family Fund, the UK’s largest grant-making charity for families raising disabled children, will share the findings of its photo research project Window to our world – which brings together poignant family stories and images of daily life and research highlighting the challenges and joys of raising disabled children.

Jodie lives in Craigavon with her son, Jimmy, who’s eight and has autism, epilepsy, and developmental delay.

She explained the difference Family Fund grants have made in her son’s life.

“Around two, Jimmy’s speech started to regress, he was having seizures, and an assessment quickly led to an autism diagnosis. I knew the signs, but that day was still a hard, lonely day.

“Jimmy has low muscle tone, particularly in his mouth and tongue, so I used to actually blend everything up until four or five because he couldn’t chew it.

"He absolutely loves water and swimming classes as a young toddler, but as his autism developed, our very busy, noisy local pool began to cause him sensory meltdowns. There were also absolutely no swimming lessons for children with additional needs either. So the one activity that brought Jimmy so much joy and helped with strengthening his muscles was taken from him following his diagnosis.”

She added: “When I applied to Family Fund, to my surprise one of the options available to us was an inflatable hot tub, which I immediately listed as our first choice. It arrived within weeks and it has been the best thing Jimmy ever received, which is why I chose the picture of him in it for the Window to our World digital report. It offers relaxation, a chance to build muscle tone, and to learn water safety. Autistic children are three times more likely to drown than those without autism.

“I’m a single parent and I was only able to grab bits of part-time work which I fitted around caring for him when he was younger, so that’s had a massive impact on us financially. I also had to home school him when there was no suitable education setting available for him when he was younger. I’m currently working as a TA (teaching assistant) for children with additional needs and training to be a teacher, so having several hundreds of pounds for items in line with Jimmy’s disability needs would be out of reach.”

Cheryl Ward, Family Fund chief executive, said: “For 50 years Family Fund has provided essential grants to improve life for families raising disabled or seriously ill children on a low income. They know best what their children need to thrive, which is why we’ve provided 4,605 grants in Northern Ireland worth £1.6 million in the last year alone.

“Every single family we have helped has their own unique story of how our grants have enabled them to spend quality time together. Our Window to our world report compiles 18 of these special stories and personal photos, at an important moment in our history where support is needed now, more than ever, for families raising disabled and seriously ill children on a low income across the UK.

“We wholeheartedly welcome new applications for grants from families on lower incomes, raising seriously ill and disabled children.”

Families raising disabled or seriously ill children in Northern Ireland on lower incomes are urged to apply for support from Family Fund today, with information about grant items and eligibility available online: https://www.familyfund.org.uk/grants/schemes/northern-ireland-core-programme/