Rebecca Perkins is one of those unique individuals who sees a problem but does not shy away from it. She stares the problem head on, and dedicates her entire being into making sure no one else has to endure such heartache. Rebecca Perkins is the founder of My Special Child, an organisation that provides information, strategies, and support to parents, carers, and educators of children with a special need, learning difficulty, or behavioural challenge. Rebecca inspiration to establish My Special Child was her own special child, Lachlan, aged 11, who has ADHD and an intellectual disability.Rebecca began her career educating special needs children in the United Kingdom in 1999. At that point in time, the mainstream school system understood segregation as the best way to ‘deal’ with children with additional needs.

Rebecca was left to teach a tiny roomful of just 12 students, each with their own unique struggles and challenges, though she was inspired by their ceaselessly upbeat and hardworking nature. Her experience with special needs grew over the years as she took on a variety of both paid and voluntary roles within the special needs community, and she complemented her knowledge with qualifications in Psychology, Sociology, Law, and a Diploma in Autism and ADHD. After having Lachlan in 2005, Rebecca became more and more frustrated with the lack of information and support available to parents of children with additional needs. In 2014, she moved from England to Australia in the hopes of finding more information, and although she did, it was not nearly enough.

Rebecca made the admirable decision to make that information accessible, opening My Special Child in 2015. She set to work creating the very first version of the My Special Child website. Her readership slowly built up, and Rebecca now convenes conferences all over Australia, where parents, carers, and educators are able to listen to special guests lecturers, learn new information, and make a whole new network of friends.Rebecca saw a problem and she sought to fix it. It is because of her sympathy and selflessness that children struggling because of additional needs will be supported and enabled to reach their fullest potential and achieve their dreams.

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