The last decades have revealed new understandings of autistic people and our lives. Originally seen as a series of disastrous behaviour problems to be fixed, new research and years of collaboration with autistic people of all kinds has changed almost everything society thought it knew about autism.
This project and report was co-produced with a group of people with lived experience and commissioned in 2020 from NDTi by the Care and Health Improvement Programme, which is jointly managed by the Local Government Association (LGA) and the Association of Directors of Adult Services (ADASS).
We now know that autistic people are in every role in society, whether it is a volunteer at a charity, or as a front-line healthcare professional. Enabling autistic lives does not just mean improving care home settings but considering the environments for the vast majority of autistic people who live and work in everyday places.
Most autistic people have significant sensory differences, compared to most non-autistic people. Autistic brains take in vast amounts of information from the world, and many have considerable strengths, including the ability to detect changes that others miss, great dedication and honesty, and a deep sense of social justice. But, because so many have been placed in a world where they are overwhelmed by pattern, colour, sound, smell, texture and taste, those strengths have not had a chance to be shown. Instead, they are plunged into perpetual sensory crisis, leading to either a display of extreme behaviour – a meltdown, or to an extreme state of physical and communication withdrawal – a shutdown. If we add to this the misunderstandings from social communication with one another, it becomes easier to see how opportunities to improve autistic lives have been missed. The sections within the report guide teams on how to consider sight, sound, smell, and touch.
The executive summary is now available to read on the LGA website.
The full report, which includes a sensory checklist and recommendations for improvements, can be accessed on our website.
The paper was written in partnership with many autistic people and is based on autistic experience:
Contributors
Alexis Quinn
Autistic campaigner and activist, public speaker, author of Unbroken. Her images inspired by the paper will be shared during July 2021.
Angela Heeley
An autistic person with high sensitivity to sound, light, touch, and odour, a parent of an autistic individual, and a Chartered Architect with insight into construction matters and domestic design.
Anna Levermore
Anna is an autistic Expert by Experience working on Care Education and Treatment Reviews. She is a member of Bemix, a self-advocacy group in Kent.
Carly Jones MBE
Carly is an autistic woman and campaigner for the rights of autistic women and girls.
Conor Eldred-Earl
Conor is an autism advocate, public speaker and advisor. He is passionate about supporting meaningful autistic involvement in decisions affecting autistic people.
Cos Michael
Cos is an autistic speaker, trainer and consultant on autism and ageing. She led the NAS Autism and Ageing workstream and now delivers training and presents at conferences in the UK and abroad.
Dr Damian Milton
Damian is a Lecturer in Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities at the Tizard Centre, University of Kent, and a Project Leader of the National Autistic Taskforce.
Dr Ruth Moyse
Ruth has worked as a primary school teacher and is now a full-time doctoral researcher into the experiences of autistic girls at mainstream schools.
Emma Dalmayne
Autistic advocate and writer. Author of It’s An Autism Thing I’ll Help You Understand It. CEO Autistic Inclusive Meets, founding member of Autism Inclusivity Facebook group.
James
James has audio and visual sensitivity. He is a sensory seeker and enjoys running, climbing, mountain biking and swimming in the North Sea.
Karl Stephenson
Karl is an autistic Expert by Experience working on Care Education and Treatment Reviews. He supports businesses and healthcare providers to understand the sensory needs of autistic people.
Kelly-Anne Harmer
Kelly lives in London with her husband and one year old child. She is autistic and works in food science and development.
Marion McLaughlin
Marion is an autism campaigner and team member at Triple A’s – an entirely autism led peer support charity for autistic people.
Rachel Cotton
Rachel is a founding member of Autistic Pride Reading.
Richard Maguire
Richard is a keen photographer. He is an author (I dream in Autism), an autistic trainer and mentor and the director of Autism Live. His photographs inspired by the paper will be shared during July 2021.
Writers and Editors
Ann Memmott
Ann is an autism trainer, advisor and mentor. She is the office manager of a busy surveying company. Ann is passionate about improving lives and services for autistic people.
Chris Memmott
Chris is an autism trainer, advisor and mentor. Chris works as an Expert by Experience on Care and Treatment Reviews and advises on sensory environments.
Dr Gemma Williams
Gemma is an autistic Early Career Researcher and ESRC Postdoctoral Research Fellow based at the University of Brighton, with research interests in autistic communication, loneliness, social justice and social policy.
Jill Corbyn
Jill was the autism development lead at NDTi. She established the autism team at NDTi and supported delivery of sensory environment checks in hospitals, advisory work for autistic people and peer support for autistic people and their families. She is now an NDTi Associate.
Images
Flow Observatorium
Flow Observatorium is a neurodivergent led hub that enables artists to connect, network and access opportunities. They aim to increase visibility, understanding and confidence of neurodivergent artists. Flow Observatorium was pleased to support connection and collaboration on this project, with Tom and Jon producing artwork that gives an additional autistic flavoured visual metaphoric contribution.
Jon Adams
Jon is both a contemporary Artist, advocate and researcher. He makes a variety of work in many differing media often referencing his autism, synaesthesia and dyslexia, all interwoven with history, science, time and his past experiences. He’s shown in galleries such as Royal Academy, Tate Modern and been commissioned by many arts and science organisations including projects for Parliament, London 2012 and on stage. He advocates for the rights of Neurodivergent people to fully access the arts, funding, health care and relevant research.
T.E.Yates
“Unassuming, unusual and enigmatic, T.E. Yates is a multi-disciplinary artist of rare and disarming qualities that must be seen and heard to be believed.” – Louis Barabbas
Yates produces detailed pencil drawings utilising a hybrid of graphite and charcoal. He is also a digital illustrator, multi-instrumentalist, singer-songwriter and award-nominated animator.
Resources
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