My middle son Sam is autistic. He may not 'look' disabled, but the reality is that he is.

For those of you that don't know, Dumfries and Galloway Council are about to embark on the second wave of budget cuts to the learning support in schools following the summer. This means that not only will Sam have to somehow cope with a new class, teacher and curriculum, but do so without the support he needs. His support will be cut to only two hours in the morning - when I asked his teacher who has supported him since Primary One if she felt Sam would cope her answer was simple: No. He needs the support he gets now.

I am in the process of organizing some leaflets that will feed into a petition I am hoping to take to the council. If you would like to pledge your support please let me know and I will be round to gather your signature.

In the meantime I had a discussion with Sam about what it would mean. Please remember this is a little boy last year that was not coping at school at all. That hid his school work because he thought it looked so bad compared to others. That told me he didn't want to be Sam anymore because "Sam never does anything right". He needs your help and support to make sure he doesn't go back to being that little boy that was so alone and ostracized at school. He needs your help and support to make sure he can still access his education to a degree that opens his future up - not closes it.

We need your voices, even if you're not local.

Sam is not the only child in this situation. Across Dumfries and Galloway there are children now facing a future of education without the support they need. 

**Sam gave me his permission to share this video and will be actively involved in making the leaflets, collecting signatures and speaking to the council**