MindBuilders, a UK programme derived from the American model Play Project, has been running in the London borough of Tower Hamlets for the past four years under founder Sibylle Janert.
Dr Rick Solomon, who developed the Play Project programme, was in London last week to hold a workshop conference for parents and practitioners.
In the programme, parents learn how to interact with their children in the home through initiating interaction, storytelling, two-way gesturing and copying.
'The model grew out of a desperate need for parents to have intervention that works,' said Dr Solomon. 'It's intensive intervention, up to 25 hours per week, with a one-on-one set-up. The difference from more traditional programmes is that it is developmental as opposed to behavioural.
'Parents are more involved in this programme and it's promoting their relationship with their child. We help parents to feel that connection with the child through coaching them to be their child's play partner.'
Dr Solomon also spent two days training six new therapists who will help to support more families in Tower Hamlets.
'Sibylle Janert really deserves credit for this,' he said. 'I trained her and she was so successful in helping children, that they wanted to involve more people.'
Khalida Khan, manager for integrated services for disabled children in Tower Hamlets, said, 'Mindbuilders has been our vehicle and this training will now allow our professionals to deliver the Play Project approach as one form of intervention. It's a very rich programme. There's a lot of humour and warmth in the play.'
In the US around one in 100 children are affected by autism, while in the UK it is one in 150. Dr Solomon reckons that the programme is effective for two-thirds of participating families.
He said, 'We need an intervention programme that is cost effective as well as efficient. If the Play Project is effective, it could prove to be a solution, as the average cost is $3,500 or £2,000 per child per year, compared with more traditional behavioural programmes which can be as much as $50,000 per child.'
Further information: email info@mindbuilders-consulting.org
