Lil is an exceptionally bright, funny and loving 6 year old with a huge personality and so much love to give.

She is also neurodivergent, living with ADHD, a Pathological Demand Avoidance (PDA) profile, severe anxiety, and sensory processing differences.

Over time, anxiety has made Lil’s world painfully small. She has been unable to attend school for most of the year and ordinary childhood experiences like going to a park, visiting a shop, or attending an appointment can quickly become overwhelming. When distressed, Lil can struggle to communicate, lose her awareness of danger or try to run away to escape feeling unsafe.

At home, she relies heavily on deep physical pressure to help her body calm down. When she is dysregulated, talking or explaining how she feels can feel like an impossible demand. A trained assistance dog changes that, it provides comfort, safety and deep-pressure regulation without asking her to say a single word.

Why We Need Your Help:

We are fundraising for a professionally trained assistance dog tailored specifically to Lil’s needs.

A matched dog will be trained to provide deep pressure therapy, rest its head in her lap during meltdowns, offer grounding after nightmares and help keep her safe in public places. Most importantly, it will give her a constant, non judgmental anchor of safety so she can slowly begin stepping back out into the world.

An assistance dog isn't a magic cure, but it offers something priceless: a way for Lil to build confidence and reclaim her childhood.

How you can help:

The total cost for Lil’s matched assistance dog including its specialist training, public-access preparation and ongoing family support is £15,500.

We are hoping our community can help us raise the funds needed to make this possible for her.

Our hopes for Lil are made up of ordinary moments: sleeping in her own room with her dog beside her, asking to go out on her bike, or enjoying a simple family day out without everything feeling too frightening or overwhelming.

Every donation, no matter how small, brings us closer to giving Lil that safety net. If you aren't able to donate, simply sharing our campaign means the world to us.

#HelpLilLiveALittle?

7.5% of all donations to Tree of Hope in relation to this appeal will be allocated to the general charitable purposes of Tree of Hope to cover our core operating costs.

If we raise insufficient funds, or surplus funds, then the funds will be used, if appropriate, to fund support for our child’s needs in accordance with Tree of Hope’s charitable objects. If in those circumstances we are unable to use all or part of the funds for the benefit of our child in accordance with Tree of Hope’s charitable objectives, then any funds that cannot be used will be transferred to be used for the general charitable purposes of Tree of Hope.