Our Story
Our Story
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Hello there!
I'm Ruan, the founder of LaunchPod Australia. My wife and I are both registered Early Childhood Teachers with extensive experience in special education. We are also the parents of two extraordinary children on the autism spectrum with complex needs. We deeply understand the challenges and joys that come with nurturing neurodivergent children. Our personal experiences have profoundly shaped our empathetic and innovative approach to support other families on similar journeys.
Navigating the complexities of neurodiversity can be daunting for both children and parents. From managing multiple therapy appointments to seeking out neuroaffirming care that truly understands your child, it can be exhausting. That's exactly why we created LaunchPod Australia—a sanctuary where families can access strength-based, playful, and neuroaffirming therapeutic interventions, all within the comforting confines of home. Our guiding principle is simple yet powerful: foster connection before direction.
At LaunchPod, we seamlessly integrate our professional expertise with genuine personal insights, designing NDIS-compliant programs that effectively support capacity building and increased independence. Our interventions are rooted in the evidence based DIR Floortime framework (Developmental, Individual-differences, Relationship-based), tailored to meet each child at their unique developmental, social, and emotional stages, facilitating a truly individualised, low-demand approach. We believe that building a strong foundation of shared attention and co-regulation to encourage engagement and reciprical communication leads to measureable progress in building children's overall functional skills.
We have also discovered that neurodivergent children often excel when engaged with innovative technologies like Virtual Reality, LEGO Robotics, drones and much more. These tools are not utilised for entertainment purposes; we harness their potential to create engaging, therapeutic activities that promote skill development and functional capacity in everyday life.
Our services are designed for children aged 5-12, blending our neuroaffirming practices with cutting-edge resources to foster essential skills for today's innovative world. All activities are carefully curated to be fun, engaging, and resilience-building, guided by our senior developmental occupational therapist to ensure the highest standards of quality and up-to-date practices.
Over recent years, we've witnessed the transformative impact our programs have had on over 60 children and their families, offering a safe and nurturing environment that empowers individuals to connect, participate, and thrive. Each success story reaffirms our commitment to creating spaces where neurodivergent children can leverage their strengths and achieve their full potential.
Thank you for letting us be a part of your journey, and we look forward to supporting you and your family every step of the way!
Testimonials
Testimonials
"You take skill building to a whole new level! Hudson has never had so much fun while learning new skills. His sessions with you are the highlight of his week! Your resources and equipment are fantastic! Thank you so much for giving our boy new zest for life!"
"You take skill building to a whole new level! Hudson has never had so much fun while learning new skills. His sessions with you are the highlight of his week! Your resources and equipment are fantastic! Thank you so much for giving our boy new zest for life!"
~Thomas~
"THANK YOU for being so amazing and knowing EXACTLY what to do to bring Skye out of her shell. There is nothing like personal experience and your incredible skills, intuition and persistence. She can’t wait to see you tomorrow!"
"THANK YOU for being so amazing and knowing EXACTLY what to do to bring Skye out of her shell. There is nothing like personal experience and your incredible skills, intuition and persistence. She can’t wait to see you tomorrow!"
~Bec~
"Just when we thought we reached the end of our rope, we found the LaunchPod Super Skills Program. Our boys were depressed and discouraged from previous negative learning experiences, but after just one session they are now motivated, engaged and can't stop talking about their experience with you! Thank you, thank you, thank you!"
"Just when we thought we reached the end of our rope, we found the LaunchPod Super Skills Program. Our boys were depressed and discouraged from previous negative learning experiences, but after just one session they are now motivated, engaged and can't stop talking about their experience with you! Thank you, thank you, thank you!"
~Ella~
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