THERE is nothing more fundamental than a parent’s hopes and aspirations for their children.

For the vast majority growing up is about friendships and relationships - that often last a lifetime - school, clubs and classes, sleepovers and birthday parties.

But sometimes it is not so straightforward. Sometimes – and often noticeably quite early in life - it becomes apparent a child is struggling when it comes to interacting with other children or communicating in general.

They become isolated, withdrawn. Their language skills fail to develop and they find it hard to understand other people’s emotions and feelings and have difficulty starting conversations or taking part in them properly.

All of these are signs of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) – something which we are becoming increasingly familiar with now that it is recognised and children can be accurately diagnosed often from an early age.

Surprisingly it is estimated that as many as one in every 100 people in the UK has ASD – and more boys are diagnosed with the condition than girls.

The main features of ASD can be recognised during early childhood although some may not become noticeable until a change of situation such as starting nursery or school.

There is no cure – but there is plenty of support out there for parents and families and the children.

As a council we have an autism strategy in place and are working towards becoming an autism-friendly authority. One of the key priorities is to deliver better services for children as they grow into adulthood and beyond.

This includes support and awareness training for groups in our communities, supporting parents and families before and after diagnosis and of course education.

Last week I had the pleasure of attending a conference in Greenock which brought together experts from across Scotland to discuss Autism Friendly Schools. We had presentations on national and local authority strategies but also heard about the personal experiences of young people and families living with autism.

In Inverclyde we have over 130 children in our primary schools diagnosed with autism. As they move through into secondary school it is clear we will have to be prepared to support them in the best way possible through a variety of means – training of teachers, support and awareness – being key.

We have a better understanding than ever of the condition – particularly that every child is different and no two cases are ever the same.

But what is consistent is that a child who is understood and supported can succeed and aspire like any other child.