Glossop parents unite to demand better services for autistic and ADHD children

Local parents in Glossop have penned a letter to High Peak’s general election candidates, to demand that, if elected, they take action to improve services for autistic and ADHD children in Glossop.

75 parents signed a letter to candidates highlighting the issues facing their children in Glossop. 

The letter states that autistic and ADHD children in Glossop are being failed by the education and healthcare services in the area. Parents are demanding that each candidate, no matter what party they are from, makes a commitment to:

• Fight for better, locally delivered CAMHS services in the Glossopdale area. 

• Demand an end to the ridiculous situation whereby children’s access to mental health services is controlled by their school. 

• Demand that Derbyshire County Council spends a suitable amount of the funding they have received for better SEND services, in the Glossopdale area. 

• Demand that Derbyshire County Council and local schools improve their processes around supporting families with EHCP applications. 

• Fight for funding for locally delivered activities for autistic and ADHD children and groups in the Glossopdale area. 

Local parent Pete Tomlin, who has coordinated this joint letter added: “It is exhausting to continuously have to fight for better education and health services for our children. Parents are fed up and feel utterly failed by local schools, the county council and the NHS. It is time for things to change and so we are demanding that candidates for the general election promise to help improve the situation for our autistic and ADHD kids in Glossop”. 

Holly Sprake-Hill, Specialist Neurodevelopmental Occupational Therapist and founder of Our Gang: Glossop Autistic & Neurodivergent Youth Group said: “Neurodivergent children, young people and their families within Glossop are woefully neglected by mental health, education, Early Help and social care services due to our geographic location, under-resourced services, and a lack of accountability enabling a shamefully outdated approach. Our families come out of support services more traumatised than when they first asked for help. I work across Greater Manchester but I have yet to see a place with less effective support for neurodivergent young people and families than in Glossop. We want to see investment in school based neurodivergent focused mental health support. Investment in contemporary approaches to supporting young people who are neurodivergent and their families”.