The local government of Marikina City is planning to construct a new autism center to provide free assessment and therapy for children with special needs.

Mayor Marjorie Ann Teodoro said the facility aims to provide extra care for children with autism, noting an increasing number of special education students in the city’s schools.

“Right now, what we can give them is a free assessment because we have hired a developmental pediatrician who assesses the level or the spectrum where our children with autism are,” Teodoro told DAILY TRIBUNE in an interview Tuesday.

The mayor said she is currently looking for occupational and speech therapists, even on a part-time basis, to work at the center. She said the facility would help families who cannot afford therapy services.

The city government is currently seeking a budget for the construction of the center.

“For our fellow citizens who are parents who are having a hard time, we want to help them,” Teodoro said. “Even up to high school, we need to bridge them, transition the children.”

Teodoro added that she hopes to extend the support to college-level students with autism, saying she envisions the city’s college, Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Marikina, graduating students with special needs.