Decentralisation portal continues its series of articles on community initiatives that make public spaces and services more accessible to all residents. This time, the focus is on Levchyk Spectrum Hub, a joint project of the Mykolaiv City Council and the “Future for Ukraine” charitable foundation, where children with autism receive free support from specialists and their families are provided with the necessary support.

For families who are raising children with autism, it is important to have access to high-quality services, including specialists to help develop communication and social skills and gradually prepare the child for education and independent living.

In Mykolaiv, one such facility is Levchyk Spectrum Hub – a centre for the correction and adaptation of children with autism. Here, children receive free sessions with teachers and psychologists, and parents are given support and advice on their child’s further development.

For five-year-old Maksym, the sessions at the centre have already produced noticeable results. The boy has been attending the Levchyk Spectrum Hub for five months. During this time, he has developed spoken language: he knows his name, responds when his parents speak to him, and can express his own requests.

For five-year-old Katia, the changes began with another thing – her ability to stay in a session for longer and gradually get used to interacting with the specialists. Her mum, Viktoriia, initially had her doubts that her daughter would be able to sit through a 40-minute session. Now Katia enjoys coming to the centre; sometimes she takes part in sessions without a break, and at times she even waits by the door of the psychologist’s office for the session to begin. The little girl also attends group sessions.

The need for such services in Mykolaiv remains high. The war presents new challenges for families who are raising children with autism. At the same time, mainstream educational institutions often lack the specialists needed to systematically prepare such children for learning, whereas private remedial services may be financially unaffordable for families. Levchyk Spectrum Hub is designed to meet precisely this need.

The centre was established in partnership with the Mykolaiv City Council and the “Future for Ukraine” charitable foundation. The city provided the premises and ensures the centre’s operation, and the partners contributed to arranging the space and organising its work. Here, children receive ABA therapy, sensory integration, speech therapy, and art therapy sessions free of charge.

‘Thanks to our cooperation with partners, we have managed to create a high-quality space where children with autism spectrum disorder can receive the necessary services free of charge and work with qualified teachers and psychologists. Thanks to this synergy, we are breaking down barriers and creating more opportunities for children and their families,’ says Nadiia Skopenko, Acting Director of the Department of Labour and Social Protection of the Mykolaiv City Council.

Levchyk Spectrum Hub has become an example of how a community can pool its own resources with the support of partners to meet the needs of families. Parents are not left to cope alone with issues relating to their child’s development. They receive support from specialists nearby, whilst the children gradually develop skills that help them communicate and interact better with others.