Surrey Mum: "Early understanding saves lives, waiting for crisis costs lives"
A Surrey mum has started an online petition calling for mandatory neurodivergent screening following the loss of her son
A Surrey mum is calling for mandatory neurodevelopmental screening after losing her son following a long wait for diagnosis
The petition says screening could take place in primary care, including GP appointments and schools at key developmental stages.
It adds the screenings should include early, trauma-informed and identity safe screening tools, with clear referral pathways, follow-up support and monitored outcomes.
The signature closes tomorrow (January 31) and already has over 27,000 signatures.
Ingrida lost her son Jader in 2024 to suicide, and told us she believes things would have been different if he had received his autism diagnosis sooner.
Ingrida, who also works as an NHS emergency worker, told us she was blown away by the amount of support
"I just see everybody coming together. Everybody sharing their own own life experience, you know, their fights, their waiting times, their struggles.
I get messages from adults who now 40s, 60s saying if this was done when I was younger my life could be different."
Ingrida told us the main aim of the petition is to cut waiting times for diagnoses, saying the wait young children are facing for screenings, is costing lives.
"That wait for young person, it means decline. They're not going to improve, they're not going to get better, they're just going to decline. Every single week or month is decline."
Ingrida told us that because her son Jader was academically strong, it was never suspected there was something that required screening. She says that mandatory screening would prevent children like Jader falling through the cracks.
Following the petition closing, Ingrida told us that the fight for her wasn't even close to over
"This is not the end. This petition has shown how many families are living this reality and I will continue pushing for evidence, submissions and policy change because children deserve to be seen early and helped early. And I just feel I have huge community built behind my back.
I know that early understanding saves lives, waiting for crisis costs costs lives"