A MOTHER-of-three and her young carer son will be donning onesies to raise awareness and money during National Autism Awareness Week.

Linda Akehurst, 36, and 11-year-old Mitchell, of Park North, will join members of the Swindon Autism/ADHD support facebook group for Onesie Wednesday on April 1.

This will be held at the Orbital Shopping Park with funds going towards the National Autistic Society.

Linda’s two sons, Casey, 14 and five-year-old Jamie both have autism with the condition affecting their lives on a daily basis.

“They have difficulty socialising, they’re very aware of their own space," she said.

"They can have meltdowns in public which is difficult because people can think I’m hurting them but I’m just trying to calm them down.”

The Facebook group, which Linda help set up, now has more than 600 members and gives friends and relatives of autism and ADHD sufferers a forum to share views, tips and advice.

She said the group is a great support for her and husband Stephen.

“We meet up and have coffee, lunch or meet for breakfast in the morning. We’ll also have barbecues where our kids can get to know one another," she said.

"It’s nice to have that time to talk with other mums or even have a bit of a moan if we need to.”

Linda, who had to give up work to care for her boys, relies upon the help of middle son Mitchell, who does not have the condition and is certified as a young carer for his two brothers.

“He’s an angel and he helps me out a lot. He’s so good with his two brothers. It does frustrate him sometimes but he has a great deal of patience," she said.

Casey attends a specialist unit at Commonweal School, while Jamie is at the Chalet School, in Liden.

And Linda said she was grateful both her sons have daily support and said:

“It’s helped them both a lot, my kids are lucky in that they are in a school which can provide specialist services for them, not every kid is so lucky.

“More important than raising money is raising awareness. People sometimes don’t understand how difficult the world can be for people with autism- we want to change that.”

Autism is a lifelong developmental disability that affects how sufferers communicate and relate to other people. It also affects how sufferers make sense of the world around them

An estimated 700,000 people in the UK are on the autistic spectrum, with the National Autistic Society providing information, support and services for people with autism.

To join the onesie walk meet at Orbital Shopping Park close to Starbucks at 9.30am on April 1. For more information visit www.twitter.com/SwindonAsdADHD or www.autism.org.uk