Meet the Cambridgeshire dad whose alphabet tattoo helps his son communicate

The father of a non-speaking autistic boy has had the alphabet tattooed on his arm to make sure his son can always communicate with him. Dan Harris, 45, from Peterborough, got the £180 tattoo on his left forearm two weeks ago due to concerns that his son Joshie, 10, couldn't always express his needs.

Diagnosed with autism at two years old, Joshie uses an iPad, known as his 'talker', to communicate with simple words and pictures. However, Dan said the device could run out of battery or get lost or damaged, leaving Joshie unable to express himself.

Dan said: "Joshie comes into my room and touches my arm first thing in the morning to check the tattoo is still there. He's still learning that it's permanent and not going away.

"He can spell out my name, his name, or spell out what he means. He'll point out the letters and build a basic sentence of a few words."

Dan said Joshie's 'talker' running out of battery was becoming a problem as it was constantly with him. He said: "Once we were up in Scotland at a beach and the talker had run out of battery.

"We were really sad at how upset Joshie was – he was desperately trying to tell us what he wanted. When we got home and charged it, he told us he wanted an ice cream but the moment had passed because we'd left."

Joshie's 'talker', a device that uses augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), has 'transformed' his life. The alphabet tattoo is another 'complementary' method for Joshie to express himself if the iPad becomes lost, damaged or unusable.

Dan said: "Joshie is a non-speaking autistic boy and when he was younger, he would communicate through physicality and pull you towards what he wanted. Before the talker, he would get incredibly frustrated not being able to tell us his desires but now he can.

"We're blown away that his cognitive ability isn't locked up in his head and he can communicate a certain way. It's not replacing his speaking, it's scaffolding it."

The father-of-two said Joshie's talker can help him 'eloquently' communicate his needs while the tattoo is a back-up – and a way for him to practice his spelling. Dan said: "He tells us he wants 'ice cream' and he can spell it out on my arm.

"He is beginning to start bringing those letters together to say the word. Even though kids like Joshie may not be able to verbalise, they can spell and they know what they want – they understand."

Inspired by Joshie, Dan set up the Neurodiversity in Business charity, a group of unpaid volunteers who are looking to transform the life chances of neurodivergent people. As founder, Dan has spoken with Prime Minister Keir Starmer and been invited to the United Nations in Paris and New York to speak on the issue.

Joshie even accompanied him to a UN meeting, where he used his 'talker' to say: "I go big city, I go taxi, I have big breakfast." Dan has also previously managed to secure funding for the installation of 100 communication boards in Peterborough to help autistic and other non-verbal individuals.

He said: "There is a real discrimination against disability and for non-speakers, it's not very well understood. When Joshie and I were at a communication board, a woman told us they shouldn't be here as they were ruining nature. Does Joshie not have a right to be there and be able to communicate?

"As a compassionate society we should be understanding the difference in how the brain operates. Joshie would love to have more ice cream and it is on the tip of his tongue. It is a difference in the way his brain develops it's not that he won't, he can't."