I am the mother of a severely autistic little boy, age 7, called Ollie. We live in Thurso, Caithness, Scotland. Since the closure of THOR HOUSE in Thurso as a respite centre, there now exists NO RESPITE CARE PROVISION for a radius of at least 211+ miles from Thurso.

Life with severe autism is a daily grind. For me, it consists of a high level of supervision (at all hours), cleaning, scrubbing (yes, urine & poo), washing endless laundry, wiping & repainting the walls, cleaning all the glass windows & doors, as well as personal care for my son: dressing him/changing him/washing him, etc.

Ollie is non-verbal, which means that he doesn't speak at all. He doesn't have a fixed method of communication either. He bites himself on a daily basis, leaving a permanent area of damaged skin. He can swing from an elated mood to a very agitated mood, and he makes loud vocal sounds throughout the day - regardless of his mood. He stims, sometimes until 02:00 in the morning. 

I manage Ollie's care alone, as his mother and Unpaid Carer, whilst also taking care of my 3 other children and running a busy house. I need and deserve some respite because if I become too exhausted, then we will all suffer - and Ollie's safety will be at risk. 

Ollie has previously managed to escape on a couple of occasions, which was very scary and emotionally intense for me, and once during the school holidays,  he dropped a glass and gashed himself - requiring stitches in hospital. Occupational Therapy has assessed Ollie several times, and he now has a specialist wet room at home and a specially erected garden fence to prevent him from climbing out.

I (and other parents) am urgently calling on The Highland Council to reinstate the basic respite care services that Caithness used to have.