Mum’s warning after autistic toddler, 3, almost drowned in lake

A mother whose autistic three-year-old girl almost drowned in a lake after running off from her home said it was heartbreaking to see how quickly people could make cruel judgements about her care.

Ayda, who is also non-verbal, miraculously survived after being found face down in a lake near her home in Thatto Heath in St Helens in April 2024.

Her mother Alex Price, 40, said more awareness was needed about “autism elopement”, where autistic children leave the safety of a responsible person’s care or safe area, and how common it was.

“A lot of people can be quick to call it bad parenting or that you weren’t watching them or you’re not a good enough parent – that’s not it at all,” she said. “It literally takes a split second, and it happens a lot.”

Ayda was being cared for by a relative when she escaped from the family home at about 13:00 BST. Her relative alerted the police immediately.

“There were hundreds of police cars,” Alex continued. “They were just looking everywhere.

“She was found face-down, floating in the lake. Her nappy had kept her afloat. They all said it was like they were working on a dead body.

“The paramedics said they didn’t have a pulse for a while, but they all said that they’d have stayed there all night working on her and they wouldn’t have given up.

“Then they got some water up and she started breathing again.”