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Emily and I are going to abseil down the Spinnaker Tower on Sunday 14th August to raise money and awareness for a fantastic charity close to my heart, which is the Portsmouth Down Syndrome Association (PDSA). 

The PDSA is a self funded charity that provides support to families and vital training and education to schools and professionals who work with children with Down Syndrome. It also organises social events where parents get the opportunity to meet other parents and the chance for the children to form friendships with other children.

The PDSA has been an amazing charity to me and my family for the past 11 years. 

Our son Alfie was born with Down Syndrome in 2011. In the early months of his life the charity provided my family with support and the opportunity to meet other families, which have now become close friends. 

Alfie initially attended baby development and early development groups which helped develop his skills and reach his milestones. The input and training helped prepare Alfie for school, not only with phonics and early reading, but also speech and language, auditory and memory, number work, cognitive, social, and fine motor skill development.  

Alfie then moved onto communication groups where he worked on improving his interaction and communication skills, his listening skills and social skills. 

Alfie attends a mainstream school and the special school outreach service that the charity provides has been vital in ensuring that he has had the opportunity to be in an inclusive mainstream setting whilst training has been provided to those professionals that have been working with him. 

Because of the very challenging past 2 years the charity has lost vital funds where events, such as the Great South Run, have been unable to take place. I want to help raise some funds to ensure Alfie and his friends continue to receive the fantastic services and support that the PDSA provide.

We would be very grateful if you can show your support by making a donation, no matter how small, to our fund raising page and if you want to come down and watch on the day, we would love to see you! 

We are Abseiling at 12 and will be having a few celebratory drinks, and to settle our nerves 😬 in Gun Wharf after, we would love you to join us! 

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Thank you for your support

Claire and Emily x