New centre for special needs cases in Al Ain

A new centre for special needs has been opened in Al Ain. 'The Hope Centre' is the first centre of its kind in Al Ain. It caters to the needs of children who are unable to cope with regular schooling due to various disorders such as learning disabilities, mental retardation, autism and Down's Syndrome.

The centre was established by the management of Al Ain Juniors School with English as the medium of instruction.

The centre was formally inaugurated on May 9 by Sheikh Mohammed bin Sultan bin Suroor Al Dhaheri, Member of the Executive Council and Chairman of Civil Service Commission.

He was accompanied by Khamis Obaid Hamarain Al Dharmaki, the sponsor of the centre, and Abdullah Abu Zaid, Director of Private Education, Ministry of Education, Al Ain.

The activities of the centre will help develop the abilities of the children in areas like motor, self-help, cognition language and communication and socialisation in order to help them become independent members of society.

The centre currently has committed a batch of highly specialised and trained staff comprising special educators, occupational therapists, and speech therapists, supported by a multi-disciplinary team of visiting doctors, psychologists, psychiatrists.

At present, 16 children are enrolled and a flood of inquiries have been made by interested parents.