A FOUR-YEAR-OLD autistic boy is so desperate for a friend his mother is offering to pay children to play with him, she said yesterday. Little Jack Rumsey, of Thurnby, Leicester, spends each day staring over the fence at the little boy next door, who always has friends round to play.

But he suffers from autism and cannot speak, which makes it difficult for him to socialise.

His mother, Emma Upfold, 25, has put an advert in a local newsagent's window appealing for a playmate for her lonely son.

The advert reads: "Friend wanted for Jack. If you are bored with the holidays and would like to earn some extra pocket-money, please get in touch with Jack's mum.

"I will pay £5 an hour for a child between eight and 11 to come and play with him."

A photo of the little boy is also attached to the plea, which has sat in the shop window for two weeks without any reply.

Miss Thurnby, a part-time nurse, said: "I think he's feeling lonely because he's always looking over the fence at the boy next door playing with his friends.

"It's really heartbreaking. I suppose the advert is really a last resort.

"I have got friends with children that are his age but they have not really got the patience to play with him because he can't speak. It is always a one-sided thing and you have to work really hard to get a reaction from him. I thought perhaps an older child, boy or girl, would have more patience with him.

"I just want someone to come round for tea with him or something, maybe twice a week."

Jack, who is mad about trains, Thomas The Tank Engine and Bob The Builder, is due to start school in September.

Until now the little boy, who has a younger sister, Hannah, has attended play group twice a week and had private tuition, but in the holidays he is lost for friends.

A spokeswoman for the National Autistic Society said: "We can't comment on individual cases.

"Some children with autism are very keen to interact and some are not. We are developing a befriending service to address the difficulties that people with autism face.