"When Louis was diagnosed over a year ago, I was frantic in my search for help to “fix” him.
All my time was spent in obsession and fear. SERVAM has freed my family of that overbearing
fear and doubt of “did I pick the right treatment”. Louis is thriving. He has been transformed
from a passive, insular child plagued with sensory issues, to a cheeky little boy with a wicked
sense of humour. Oddly though, Louis' impressive progress is not the biggest gain we as a
family received from doing SERVAM.
The greatest gift I received was that now when I look at my son, I no longer see a project that
I need to work on. He isn't a disease, or a disorder or a condition that needs to be fixed and
he most definitely is no longer an object of pity or sadness. He is simply and wonderfully my
beautiful boy.
SERVAM has empowered me as a mother to be the best day-to-day teacher my son could want.
I know exactly where my son skills and deficits are in areas such as communication, emotional
attunement and comprehension to name a few. I know how to make adjustments to the
physical environment, routines and supports to get the most out of Louis. I have learned
common sense ways to motivate and communicate with him. Louis still requires the help of
professionals but now I can be involved in planning his treatment with the confidence of my knowledge of his needs and strengths."
“I started the SERVAM course just a few months after my son Harry was diagnosed on the autism spectrum and count myself as extremely lucky for having had the opportunity of doing so.
It’s difficult to write a testimonial for the course without sounding clichéd: it was family-centric and accessible with practical strategies delivered by two teachers with far-reaching knowledge of and experience in the field. But there’s so much to unpack in those clichés! The course literally helped me understand my son, to see the world how he sees it and to learn how to motivate and engage him. It is full of practical strategies, from how to organise your environment to make interaction easier to autism-friendly communication, .........
....Putting the SERVAM strategies in place in our everyday life has completely changed our family experience. Harry has gone from being an anxious, insular boy who used to spend hours lying on the floor rolling his trains backwards and forwards to a happy, cheeky, adventurous lad who seeks us out and pulls us into games with him. Clichés aside, SERVAM really has changed our lives.”
"........It has drawn together the major disciplines of the authors in to a comprehensive package,
that is teaching and learning, occupational and speech therapy."
"....... has provided a solid basis for all staff, drawing together the key elements that underpin any
programme for children and young people with ASD regardless of the context, whether that be
mainstream or specialised school, home or community contexts."
"The SERVAM programme has been one of the driving forces behind the success of the school,
giving staff and parents common framework and language in which to work."
“At a time when we were struggling with our son and confused about what to do,
SERVAM equipped us with skills and knowledge to help him at home, school and
in the community........ It is the single most important thing we have done for our son.”
