Little Heroes ASD Support Group

Little Heroes ASD Support Group is a parent led support group for families of children who are on the autistic spectrum. Helen and Kim met on a professional level when Kim’s son Alfie was in the early days of receiving an official diagnosis of autism back in 2011.

Helen assisted the family in her formal role of autism specialist portage worker for the local council and together they experienced the ups and downs of the “autism rollercoaster”. When Alfie began at the local specialist school Helen and Kim decided they would like to create a small support network for families with children of similar ages – this would be the monthly coffee morning sessions at Summercourt Children Centre, Westcliff-on-Sea and officially began back in October 2012.

Several years later and Little Heroes is still going strong, is now a registered charity and continues to bring more and more families together. We provide support and assistance for families within Southend-on-Sea and the surrounding areas from as soon as they discovered there are additional needs.

Feature List

Indoor Facilities Outdoor Facilities Educational Activities

How much is it per session?

All of our weekly support sessions are free of charge. The only time we may ever ask for a heavily subsidised contribution is for external activities and/or events. These are heavily subsidised to allow all registered families to be able to take part without money being a barrier.

How do I register or sign up?

Come along to one of our weekly support sessions. Our child-based sessions require booking via our booking system, however we do also have a 'Parent/Carer Support Session' every Friday during term time of which is a drop-in session. We do ask for the 'Parent/Carer Support Session' that no children attend due to the nature of things discussed and many other factors. When you attend a session for the first time, we will ask you to complete a very short, basic membership form. Our staff and volunteers will have a chat with you and see how we can support you further, whilst also ensuring you're aware of any upcoming opportunities and activities for the whole family to enjoy.

Can I bring someone with me for support to a session?

If it is on our 'Parent/Carer Support Session' then this is fine and we do not need to know in advance (as this is a drop-in session). However, if this is for a child-based session, we do ask to try and keep this to the immediate family. If you need to bring an additional adult, we do ask that you include them in the ticket numbers and online booking. Please ensure the number of tickets booked represents the number of people attending.

How do I book spaces for your child-based sessions?

Follow the link below to access our online booking system. Simply scroll and find a date and session that suits you, select the number of tickets you require and enter all relevant details. Please be sure to let us know if this is your first time attending, so we know who needs to complete a membership form upon arrival. If you have any problems with booking into a session, please feel free to contact us via our bookings email (bookingslittleheroes.asd@gmail.com ). If there are not enough tickets for your family on the booking system, please do not book in. Instead, please contact us so our admin team can manually look at the numbers and work out if we can fit you in.

Does my child need a diagnosis to access these sessions?

No. We are here to support families throughout their entire autism journey. You do not require an official diagnosis to access our support, sessions and activities.

Can siblings attend child-based sessions as well?

For our 'Stay and Play' sessions and our 'Dads Club' session, siblings are welcome to attend of any age. They just need to be booked in via the booking system and have a ticket on your booking. However, for our 'Girls Club' and 'Youth Club' sessions, we do ask due to number limits on each session, that it is just the child aged 7+ with needs or suspected needs that attends. This is subject to change in the future, so please do keep an eye on our social media pages or if you're not sure, please do send us an email.

I need to cancel my booking, how do I do this?

Please send us a message via our social media pages or you can send us an email to our bookings email informing us of your cancellation. Our admin team will be able to cancel the booking manually on our end. Alternatively, there is an option on your end to cancel this. Please follow the link in your booking confirmation email and it should be straightforward to follow. Either way, please do reach out and make contact so we can work our way through our waiting lists.