A Belfast screenwriter has used his creative talent – and his autistic son’s love of Dr Who – to help raise funds for a children’s charity.

Declan May, who is also an author, has conceived, edited and contributed to the popular book Seasons Of War – The War Doctor Anthology (Dr Who), to raise money for Caudwell Children, the national charity that provides practical and emotional support to disabled children and their families.

Declan’s nine-year-old son Zachary has autism and his condition has left him with limited communication skills and heightened sensitivity to light and sound. If his condition is not managed he can become very anxious and upset.

In order to calm and relax his son, Declan applied to Caudwell Children, for a light sensory pack.

The specialist equipment, which includes a bubble tube, acrylic mirrors, an LED light source and fibre optic lighting, immediately reduced Zachary’s frustrations.

His parents, Declan and Rachel, also noticed that Zachary appeared more communicative while watching popular BBC1 sci-fi series Dr Who .

Declan explained: “The light sensory pack has improved my son’s well-being immeasurably. It’s reduced his stress and developed his senses and it distracts him from sensory discomfort.

“Unfortunately, the equipment doesn’t come cheap and the total cost was over £1,300, so I was incredibly grateful when Caudwell Children offered to provide fundraising support to cover 80% of the cost of the kit.”

In addition, the charity also provided £2,000 to fund ABA Therapy for Zachary. The teaching, linguistic, social and self-help skills programme has been instrumental in helping Zachary to interact with others.

Declan was so determined to thank Caudwell Children for their support that he decided to put pen to paper in order to raise funds for the charity. So he called in several favours from friends who had worked on Zachary’s favourite TV show.

He said: “Apart from the ABA sessions, one of the triggers in improving my son’s communication skills was Dr Who!

“Zachary began watching it when Matt Smith became the Doctor, and he really enjoyed it. He began talking to me and his mum, Rachel, about it.

“As a result of my job I know quite a few of the writers and authors who have worked on the programme and official book series. It suddenly occurred to me that I could use my contacts to Caudwell Children’s advantage.

“Rather than creating something from nothing I thought I could enlist my friends to create a Doctor Who anthology.”

In July 2014 Declan began the task of putting together a team of more than 30 writers to contribute to the anthology of short stories and in January 2015 an eBook was released to much acclaim.

Declan then took a further 18 months to get the book published in a limited edition paperback version.

“We’ve sold them around the world, Japan, South Korea, Australia and the US, we’ve had orders from all over the place,” said Declan.

“The BBC , and Stephen Moffat, the lead writer and producer of Doctor Who, have been brilliant in letting us use characters and imagery from the show.

“Obviously, this is on the clear understanding that nobody, other than the charity, benefits financially from the book and that it can’t be mistaken for official product.”

With the initial limited edition print run selling out within weeks, Declan is now looking to boost the charity’s coffers further by announcing that a further limited edition, with new content, will be released on January 1, 2017.

“We have some big writers including official Doctor Who novelist’s George Mann, Jenny Colgan and Lance Parkin, alongside the likes of Andrew Smith and Matt Fitton, scriptwriters for the Doctor Who audio dramas,” said Declan.

“But don’t expect to meet the usual Doctor within the pages of this book. The stories are set during the Time War and the War Doctor is the antithesis of his other incarnations. That’s what makes it so interesting.”

Seasons Of War – The War Doctor Anthology (Dr Who) is published by Chinbeard Books and can be pre-ordered for £15.99 at www.chinbeardbooks.com