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At Aspect we believe that everyone can be more inclusive simply by becoming more aware of the different and diverse ways each of us engages with our world, and by making small adjustments that recognise, and are inclusive of those differences.
For Autistic individuals, accessing the community, attending special events and even performing necessary daily tasks can be extremely challenging. However, armed with a greater awareness of neurodiversity, and by making a few simple changes or providing additional resources, you can help to create a far more inclusive environment.
What does it feel like to experience sensory overload
How we work with you
Aspect’s Autism Friendly team are dedicated to partnering with organisations to create environments which genuinely support and include Autistic people.
Whether it’s partnering with you to create an autism-friendly event, developing individualised supports or resources to improve your business practices, providing autism awareness training for staff or simply giving you a few helpful tips to get you started – our team are here to help you create a more autism friendly environment.
We believe that understanding an event or business from an Autistic perspective is critical to creating a truly inclusive environment. That is why our autism friendly team includes Autistic people, who provide input at all stages of the design, development and implementation of services and programs to support inclusion for your event or business.
Environmental Assessment
Aspect has a team of autistic consultants who are paid to help with all elements of our consultations, including environmental assessment, staff training etc. The assessment report is developed based on the feedback of our autistic consultants and is then used to design custom resources and modifications unique to your business or event.
Resource development/review
There are a wide range of resources that can be developed and implemented to support the inclusion of autistic people in various environments. These resources can include (but are not limited to):
- Visual stories
- Sensory maps
- Inclusion checklists
- Best practice guidelines
- Visual communication supports
Customised Staff Training
One of the main barriers for accessing events and environments is that autistic people are often not understood, or made to feel like they are welcome. This can often be because the staff just don’t know how to understand, relate to or support someone on the autism spectrum.
Staff training is a key component of any Autism Friendly environment. The Autism Friendly team offers staff training customised to your business, service or event. All training is co-delivered with autistic presenters who share their own relatable examples. This helps your staff to contextualise what they are learning and provides an opportunity to answer any questions your staff may have about autism or inclusive initiatives. Our staff training includes an introduction to autism, and practical strategies for staff to effectively interact with, and support autistic individuals who access your business or event.
Evaluation
Stakeholder feedback is important, as it indicates where your services are getting it right and where there may be room for development. As part of the consultancy, we can provide support in inviting and acting on feedback, to evaluate the effectiveness of inclusive initiatives.
Promotion of inclusive initiatives
Creating an inclusive environment such as this is undoubtedly a good news story and we would love to spread the word! Aspect can promote the initiative through our social media platforms and newsletters to our community. We can also engage with traditional media outlets to coordinate coverage. We can also support you to design genuinely inclusive promotions of your services that will engage the autistic community.
We also maintain a calendar of autism-friendly events on this page, regardless of whether they are developed in partnership with us or independently. If you have an autism-friendly event or special access session you wish to add to our calendar, please email autismfriendly@autismspectrum.org.au with the details and we will add it to the calendar.
How can I access an Autism Friendly Consultation?
Case Studies
In 2018, the Museum of Contemporary Art (MCA) worked with Autism Spectrum Australia to make a few small changes to their Biennale exhibition and created an autism friendly gallery experience for children and families.
Sydney's iconic Taronga Zoo has teamed up with Autism Spectrum Australia to start the Access Tonga initiative, which aims to provide a range of supports and services for guests on the spectrum.
