When Lesley Hanson died, the Teesside charity Daisy Chain lost its inspirational founder. Five months on, her husband Duane tells Christen Pears about her legacy.

LESLEY Hanson had a vision. When her son was diagnosed with autism, she began to imagine a place where he and other autistic children could be cared for while their parents took a much-needed break. She wanted to create a safe, stimulating environment - a home from home.

So certain was she of her vision, she persuaded her husband Duane to give up his job and together, the couple founded the charity Daisy Chain. By June last year, they had raised enough money to buy a farm on Teesside that will become Britain's first respite care centre for autistic children. Funds were pouring in and plans were being firmed up. Lesley's dream was becoming a reality, but tragedy struck when she went into hospital in January. She died of complications following what should have been a routine operation. She was 37 years old.

Lesley may have gone but her legacy lives on. At Daisy Chain's Respite Care and Family Support Centre, her influence is everywhere. "I come into work every morning and I'm reminded of her," says Duane. "Sometimes it's hard for me but this was her vision. She's always going to be a part of it."

The centre is based at Calf Fallow Farm, set in five-and-a-half acres of open countryside, just a few minutes' drive from the centre of Norton and the A19. A seven-foot tall wooden bear stands outside the entrance to the big, red brick house. This is Huggy, Daisy Chain's mascot. Inside, one of the walls is plastered with plans and elevations - artist's impressions of how the finished centre will look.

"It is a massive undertaking and if we thought about everything we had to do, we'd end up being overwhelmed, so we're doing things in manageable chunks. It's going to be a while before we can open the respite centre itself but in the meantime, we want to open up other facilities to schools and voluntary groups," says Duane.

Since it became a registered charity in 2002, Daisy Chain has raised an impressive £700,000 but needs another £800,000 to complete its work. The ten-bed centre, which will be the only one of its type in the UK, will serve the whole of the Tees Valley, catering from children from five to 15, and although it will focus on autism, it will provide care for children with other forms of disability.

SO far, the charity has created a research library and parent support group. They've also started offering respite care in people's homes, and work is well under way on some of the other facilities.

A quick tour of the site shows the animal petting farm is almost completed. A couple of sheep and goats graze contentedly in their pens, and they will be joined by other animals over the summer.

Next to the farm, the site has been marked out for the play barn, which will include a soft play area, classrooms, music and art rooms, as well as a meeting area for parents. There will also be an environmental trail, with herb and vegetable gardens, a wild flower pasture and bird feeding area.

Duane is hoping work will be completed by the autumn, when the first children will be welcomed to the centre.

He says: "Our plans are about providing recreational and educational opportunities for the kids. In my experience, a lot of children with special needs are just plonked down in front of a television or computer and that doesn't do anything for them.

"We will provide them with easy stages of achievement. With the organic vegetable garden, for example, they'll be able to plant the seed, water it and nurture it and go home with a bunch of carrots. It's an opportunity a lot of these kids wouldn't normally have, and it's a very calming, relaxing environment out here."

Duane and Lesley's nine-year-old son Jacob is already benefiting from his visits to the farm. He loves playing with the animals and his interaction with other people has improved. "I'm not saying it's a marvellous cure but it's certainly helped him and it will help others," says Duane.

Autism affects the way a person communicates and relates to people around them. Children with autism have a limited capacity for forming relationships and understanding other people's emotions. They have difficulty in making sense of the world everyone else takes for granted, and often have accompanying learning disabilities.

Consequently, even a trip to the supermarket can turn into an ordeal, putting parents under immense pressure. Many struggle to cope without outside help or support, desperate for a break. Marriage break-ups and nervous breakdowns are fairly commonplace.

Through raising Jacob and their involvement in a special needs playgroup, Lesley and Duane realised the need for some sort of support, an organisation that would give parents the break they needed, even if it was just for an hour or two.

"My wife was a housewife. She didn't really have any experience but she had a vision. Every night for weeks she would be up in the middle of the night, jotting notes down about what she hoped to be able to do for those children. At first I thought it was just a passing phase, but more and more, she talked about her dream of a place away from it all but that could provide the respite care parents were desperate for."

AS a social worker, Duane had good prospects and a good pension but he believed in Lesley's idea so strongly that he gave them all up to become project manager. It was a huge risk but the couple had no doubts.

"We both have a Christian faith and if you see a need, you try and meet it. That's where we came from and it's amazing to think that a charity founded by two ordinary people has done so well," he says.

They worked tirelessly, attracting money from the community, corporate sector and grant-giving organisations. It was a Christian trust which enabled them to buy the farm, while a grant from Barclays is funding the rare breeds farm. They raised the profile of autism throughout the region.

Lesley's death was a huge blow, both to Duane and the staff and volunteers at Daisy Chain, but there was no question that the work would carry on. Duane's emotions are still raw - he breaks down for a moment when he talks about it - but he is determined to see the project through.

"It was a mega blow because Lesley had been our visionary but what came out almost immediately was the legacy she had left in Daisy Chain. She gave us the vision, the framework, and we are now putting in the details. She put so much hard work into it and believed in it so much, it would be wrong to let it go."

*For more information about Daisy Chain or to make a donation, call (01642) 531248 or visit the website at www.daisychainproject.co.uk