The House of Lords Autism Act Committee praises NDTi's role in landmark report

The House of Lords Committee on the Autism Act 2009 has published its final report, Time to deliver: The Autism Act 2009 and the new autism strategy, calling for urgent, practical action to improve the lives of autistic people across England.

A key priority for the Committee was to hear directly from autistic people and those with lived experience. The Committee asked us to explore how well autistic people are involved in decisions about services and how this must be improved.

Stuart Stoner, Clerk to the Committee, praised NDTi’s role, saying:

“A key priority for the House of Lords Committee on the Autism Act 2009 was to hear direct from autistic people and others with lived experience about their concerns, priorities and demands for action. We asked NDTi to arrange a meeting with two panels of autistic people, parents and NHS and local authority professionals to discuss how effectively autistic people are involved in making decisions about NHS and local authority services and how this could be improved in the future. NDTi worked tirelessly to arrange and facilitate these meetings, and the Committee were deeply impressed by the testimonies they heard, which will inform the Committee’s final report.”

The report examines how well the Autism Act has been working and sets out what needs to change in the new autism strategy, which the Government has committed to develop using the Committee’s findings. It calls for:

A new, costed autism strategy ready for when the current one expires in July 2026.
Clear accountability for delivering priority outcomes.
Real involvement of autistic people and those who support them at every stage.

Key recommendations include:

Investing to reduce autism assessment waiting times.
Expanding autism training for public-facing staff.
Strengthening community support to prevent crises and unnecessary detention.
Improving support through key life transitions (especially into adulthood).
Building inclusive education.
Increasing employment opportunities.
Better identifying and supporting autistic people in the criminal justice system.

Kate Linsky, NDTi’s Mental Health Programme Lead, said:

“It was vital that autistic people’s own experiences shaped this report, not just statistics or policies on paper. The people who took part, including those working within statutory services, were honest, brave and clear about what needs to change. Our hope now is that government and services act on these recommendations and work with autistic people to turn them into real, tangible improvements.”

With the report now published, the Committee has completed its work and has formally ceased to exist, as is standard for House of Lords Special Inquiry Committees. The government is required to respond in writing, normally within two months, and the report will then be debated in the House of Lords.