In Denmark, several tens of thousands of children and adults live with developmental disabilities, and many families face the challenges and needs that come with it every day. It is a daily life that requires more overview, more patience, and not least, more fight for rights. As a family, it can be heavy and lonely to stand in – and therefore, there is a need for a place to seek support.

Therefore, the Fonden Sol og Strand has chosen to support Lev (National Association for People with Developmental Disabilities) with 75,000 kroner for the organization's advisory efforts for families who have developmental disabilities closely in their lives.

– This is a donation that has great significance for a membership-based organization like ours, which is very dependent on support from private donors and foundations. Specifically, the funds mean that we can expand our advisory services and thus ensure that even more families in vulnerable situations receive the support and help they need, says the director of Lev, Marie Louise Johannesen.

– For many families, it is crucial to receive the right advice at the right time. It can mean that a difficult situation does not develop into a locked conflict or prolonged distress. With this donation, we can strengthen our advisory services – both personal and digital – so that even more families experience that they are not alone, she says.

Last year, the demand for support was greater than Lev could meet. In 2025, the organization recorded nearly 900 unanswered calls. Therefore, it is gratifying that it has been possible to expand personal advisory services by 16 hours – after the summer holidays, it will increase to 21 hours.

– In addition, we are launching a new digital knowledge universe, which is available when the need arises. Here, families can find answers to questions that do not necessarily require an advisor. They will have even better access to guidance materials, podcasts, films, and articles that can help them move forward, explains Marie Louise Johannesen.

Director Marie Louise Johannesen is pleased with the donation, which means that more families can be helped.

For many families, it is crucial to receive the right advice at the right time. It can mean that a difficult situation does not develop into a locked conflict or prolonged distress. With this donation, we can strengthen our advisory services – both personal and digital – so that even more families experience that they are not alone, she says.

Inquiries to Lev range from questions about support and rights to peer-to-peer conversations with volunteers who are relatives and know life with developmental disabilities from the inside. In many cases, families lack the mental capacity, and finances are strained because it has been necessary to reduce working hours or simply stop working altogether.

– We experience that many families feel challenged in creating coherence in everyday life with a child with developmental disabilities. It can be in relation to work or family. Through our social professional advisory services, we try to find out how we can help change their living conditions so that the whole family thrives. This can include helping with their rights regarding respite care, lost earnings, etc., says Marie Louise Johannesen.

Lev was founded in 1952 and has worked for over 70 years to ensure better rights and living conditions for people with developmental disabilities and their families.