Simon Mottram, Chief Executive of Rapha – in an interview with Jonny Cooper from The Independent Mr Mottram spoke candidly about his son, Oscar, 19 who is on the sever end of the autistic spectrum. Oscar needs round the clock care, is non verbal, hyperactive and is still in nappies.
Oscar was diagnosed at 20 months old and during the interview Mr Mottram states that he and his wife Lucy knew immediately when told the diagnosis that their lives had profoundly changed.
He adds that the hardest moment with regards to Oscar’s development occurred 18 months after his initial diagnosis.
“Oscar was diagnosed early, and there are a lot of studies that show you can make a massive impact with an early intervention. We started a home programme to do a thing called Applied Behaviour Analysis (ABA), which teaches skills by breaking them down into their component parts, and Oscar was really improving. But then he caught a flu-like bug at the age of three-and-a-half and he basically lost everything he’d learned. It was a body blow. I had been clinging to the hope that there was a way for Oscar to lead a ‘normal’ life. For me, that hope disappeared when he lost his skills.”
They enrolled Oscar in TreeHouse School in Highgate that was set up by parents, including the author Nick Hornby , who wanted to continue with their ABA schooling. TreeHouse, ins now run by the charity Ambitious about Autism,
Mr Mottram says that one of the biggest difficulties for parents after they receive the initial diagnosis is that of gaining support. He describes during the interview the need to bolt doors twice when at home in order to make sure that Oscar doesn’t leave the house and put himself in danger, adding that parents are largely left to fend for themselves.
He tells that Ambitious about Autism offer parents a wraparound service and that they help parents while their child is not at school.
When asked if bringing up a son with autism had made him more ambitious for commercial success, he replied:
“It’s given me an additional drive and made more uncompromising. If I’m going to do something, I really do it – there’s no messing around. And it’s got to make some money, because I know Oscar is going to be needy for the rest of his life. I think I was already quite ambitious, but it has definitely given me some steel.”
He then further adds:
“I’m definitely a better person for it. I was probably more selfish before. My wife has taken the lead in caring for Oscar and creating a fulfilling life for him, but Oscar also gives me a grounding, a sense of perspective. And he makes me very happy. He’s never stroppy, or embarrassed by me. He’s always pleased to see me. It can be very rewarding.
“Living with someone with autism is full on, but it brings with it many things that are positive.”
A video entitled,”We take very little for granted‘ – Lucy and Simon on their son’s autism and TreeHouse School” presented by Ambitious About Autism, can be viewed below.