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Two reception centers for autistic children located in Ile-de-France will close.
TedyBear experimental centers for autistic children, there are only two in Île-de-France. They are recognized for their innovative teaching method, acclaimed for eight years. However, the Île-de-France Regional Health Agency (ARS) has announced that their centers in the 13th arrondissement of Paris and that of Saint-Cloud will close on July 7, 2022.
The parents of the fifty children cared for in these centers are not recovering. Mr. Labed, Sinai’s father, regrets this threat of closure. and underlines the progress made by her daughter, who no longer wears a diaper and speaks, since she was taken into care by the center of Saint-Cloud. Mr. Pedretti, Lorenzo’s father, notes the progress made by his son in terms of speech therapy, sociability, and motor skills.
The ARS refused to respond to our interview request. She affirms in a text that she will “ensure the continuity of the care of the children concerned and their support project, and this under the same conditions as those offered today by the centers.” However, if the parents do not accept the ARS’ proposal to accommodate their children in less innovative places, they are the ones who will be held responsible for having broken the contract.
150,000 autistic children in France need support. Of these, 80% are out of school and 60% unsupported. The 50 TedyBear children do not know where they will go next year.