THE parents of an autistic boy are campaigning to raise enough money to take him to America for treatment.

Five-year-old Joe Charman was diagnosed with autism when he was two, since then his parents have been following a play therapy programme called Son-rise to encourage their son to interact with others.

Simon and Karen Charman, who live in Candlemas Lane, Beaconsfield, are hoping to raise £8,000 to go to the States to receive more training from the programme's teachers and to get therapy for Joe.

Joe's mum, Karen, said: "When Joe was diagnosed, I knew that I wanted to do as much as I could to help him. Son-rise is unusual in that it is parent-led but we need to meet with the teachers for advice on the next stage of the therapy.

"The idea is by playing with Joe and doing things he wants to do, he will see it is more fun to play with others and not just in his own world. Before we started the programme, Joe wouldn't know you were there but now he makes eye contact with anybody that comes into the room. It has made him a lot more sociable and he is happy and contented. Ideally we want to get him to a point where he can go to a mainstream school."

Simon and Karen, who recently raised £500 for Joe at a pop quiz, have converted their garage into a play room. Karen, along with family members and volunteers, takes it in turns to play with Joe in the room.

Karen said: "Unfortunately, two of our volunteers are leaving at Christmas and we are looking for two or three people to come forward to help out two times a week for two hour sessions."

If you are interested in volunteering, please call Karen on 01494 677451 or send an email to afundforjoe@hotmail.com