When Support Comes Too Late: Why We Need to Act Sooner for Neurodiverse Children

This chart hit me hard, and it changed the course of my career.

Half the people in prison have dyslexia.

This cannot be right. Can it?

This is not a coincidence.

This is what happens when support comes too late, or not at all.

We miss the signs.

We assume they will catch up.

Parents get told to wait.

Teachers are expected to perform miracles.

And while we are waiting, they slip behind.

Not because they do not want to learn.

Not because they are lazy or stupid.

But because the system is not built for how they learn.

And once that confidence goes, and they fall behind, it is hard to get it back.

I am not looking to blame anyone.

But I do want change.

It is about being honest that the education system is creaking.

And the longer we wait to help support it, the more children fall through the cracks, with lifelong consequences.

Dyslexia is just one neurodiversity.

What about children with ADHD, autism, or working memory difficulties?

It should not take prison data to make us pay attention.

But here we are.

Our children deserve better.

Let’s change this. Together.

Founder’s Note

The lifelong consequences of failing neurodiverse children.

This post is not really about prison. It is about what happens when we wait too long to support children who learn differently, or when schools do not have the resources they need to make education accessible for neurodiverse children.

I have seen what happens when confidence starts to slip.

When my bright, curious daughter began to believe she was not good enough.

The earlier we act, the more we can change each child’s story.

The longer we wait, the more they carry with them into adulthood, often unknowingly.

I am not here to apportion blame.

I am here because I know change is possible.

And because, like many of you, I have seen what happens when the system does not adapt.

If you have lived this, as a parent, teacher, or someone who cares, I would love to hear what you have experienced and what you wish was different.