ASSIST (Autism Spectrum Service for Information, Support & Training)

Transcription

1 National Autistic Society September 2017 ASSIST (Autism Spectrum Service for Information, Support & Training) The ASSIST team Wokingham Borough Council Children s Services Learning Difficulties & Disabilities Highwood Annexe, Fairwater Drive Woodley, Berks RG5 3RU ask for a member of the ASSIST team Assist@wokingham.gov.uk Description of Service What do ASSIST offer - Eligibility; Referral process The aim of the ASSIST service is to work in a proactive, supportive and preventative way with families and providers so that children and young people living in the Wokingham Borough with autism can be the best they can be. The approach to intervention is holistic, creative and directed by the needs of the individual and those around him or her. The service provides robust information, support and training, especially supporting families pre and post diagnosis. A key factor for the service is to build capacity always looking at ways to work with many, sharing knowledge, skills and understanding of autism. Eligibility: Support for those living with, caring for or working with a child/young person diagnosed with autism, aged up to their 18 th birthday, who live in the Wokingham Borough. 1. All people with autism and their families can access universal services, information and support in relation to the condition of autism, e.g. health and education services for all, post diagnostic information, support groups, autism specific parent programmes and workshops. 2. Some people with autism and their families would like more in depth support to understand and manage autism within their family, school or leisure environment, e.g. support groups, autism specific parent programmes and workshops, autism advice within meetings. 3. A few people with autism and their families will want and/or need focused work and intervention to enable the child/young person to stay living with their family or to enable the child/young person to stay at their current school. So, following assessment, ASSIST will either work directly or alongside others, analyse why there are difficulties, and identify how adults are going to implement a positive outcome. Champions for an autism perspective

2 No referral required to access the following: Provide information and signposting in relation to autism ASSIST drop in sessions - Supporting Wokingham families that include a child with a diagnosis (or on the pathway for assessment) of Autism Spectrum Condition Join the ASSIST team alongside other parents & carers to chat, share I really value the parent conversation and support. Having members of ASSIST to help with problems. Parents ideas & problem solve and stay for the whole session or just 10 minutes. We also offer 1:1 appointments within these sessions - please book an appointment prior to the session via Vicky Round. There are facilities for pre-school children and also evening sessions. Usually the sessions are based at Bridges Resource Centre, 109 Colemansmoor Rd, Woodley RG5 4DA, but please check with the team! Contact Vicky.round@wokingham.gov.uk for dates and to book 1-1 time National Autistic Society EarlyBird parent programme - For parent/carer of children up to 5 with a diagnosis of autism or on the pathway for assessment Each family is allocated 2 places 8 weekly group sessions of 2.5 hours per week, and 3 home visits where video it s helped feedback is used to help combine theory with practice mine and E s Helps parent/carer to understand autism, develop strategies to manage problem behaviours and recognise possible trigger points relationship Helps them to develop child s communication, build knowledge, skills and 100%. increase confidence Parent. Meet other families that include a child with autism There is a 25 charge for the EarlyBird parent programme book National Autistic Society EarlyBird Plus parent programme - For parent/carer of children with a diagnosis of autism or on the pathway for assessment aged 5 9 Each family is allocated 2 places, plus 1 place for a member of school staff 8 weekly group sessions of 2.5 hours per week, plus a home visit Helps parent/carer to understand autism, develop strategies to manage problem behaviours and recognise possible trigger points Helps them to improve child s communication, build knowledge, skills and increase confidence Meet other families that include a child with autism There is a 25 charge for the EarlyBird Plus parent programme book National Autistic Society Healthy Minds parent programme - For parent/carer of children in primary school with a diagnosis of autism or on the pathway for assessment Each family is allocated 3 places, one place being for someone who supports the child e.g. school 6 weekly group sessions of 2.5 hours per week Participants should have an understanding of autism Helps parent/carer to understand more about the mental health issues that young people with autism may face Participants will learn about, and be encouraged to use, a range of strategies to help their children develop and maintain a positive and confident approach to the Humpty Dumpty moments that we can all experience in daily life. That is, times when we may feel overwhelmed or upset, but are then able to pick ourselves up and carry on

3 We look at strategies that can help children with autism to build self-esteem; increase confidence; reduce anxiety and develop resilience Meet other families that include a child with autism There is a 25 charge for the Healthy Minds workbook National Autistic Society Teen Life parent programme - for parent/carer of a young person with a diagnosis of autism or on the pathway for assessment, aged runs for 6 sessions of 2.5 hours per session Each family is allocated 3 places, one place being for someone who supports the young person e.g. school Helps parent/carer to understand autism, develop strategies to manage problem behaviours and recognise possible trigger points, build knowledge, skills and increase confidence around autism Meet other families that include a young person with autism There is a 25 charge for the Teen Life parent programme book The family should be aware of and agree to their information being held by the ASSIST team who co-ordinate autism parent programmes in Wokingham. ASSIST can then inform families of autism specific events in Wokingham. Information leaflet and details of next programmes will be sent to family once contact information is received. There is a charge for the NAS workbooks, but we do not want anyone to not be able to access our parent programmes because finance is an issue, and would ask that you talk to us. Autism Specific workshops for parents/carers, practitioners and those with an interest in autism Workshops include: Autism Awareness, level 1 this is an opportunity to understand the myths and facts around autism the hidden disability including language, social interaction, sensory issues, anxieties; how some people with autism think and do things; strategies and tools for supporting a person with autism. Understanding and writing social/visual scripts to an advanced level, level 2 raising awareness of the role of social/visual scripts as a strategy in supporting individuals with autism to understand and function in the social world around them. There will be an opportunity to write a story to describe a social situation, skill or concept in a specifically defined style and format for an individual of any age and develop this into using advanced social/visual scripts Drawing whilst talking, level 2 conversation, to explore and enhance understanding. Also building the person might feel in situations, view, and/or give us their Using drawings and colour, this understanding of some of the more communication Thinking about how to behave more positively. It really got me thinking. how to use pictures in a conversational skills and social understanding of how another exploring perspectives / points of understanding of what took place. intervention enables easier abstract concepts of social A positive, systematic approach to finding solutions autism focused, level 2 an opportunity to develop new skills in finding solutions; responding in a more creative manner towards difficulties and gaining confidence in a team approach to addressing difficulties in your setting.

4 How you can support children & young people with an autism spectrum condition to manage emotions (including anger) level 2 a bag of ideas to help you to support people with autism to promote positive behaviours how you can support understanding of their own and others emotions (including anger) and how a person with autism can learn to self-manage. Understanding & supporting the visual environment for children with autism, level 2 an opportunity to gain an understanding of effective visual support. The need for awareness of different learning styles. How to use and develop visual tools to meet the individual needs of the person with autism, and ideas for improving communication in home, school and community environments. Sexual development and puberty, level 2 an opportunity to gain an understanding of the physical and emotional changes at puberty. Learn how to prepare and support young people with autism to manage these changes and explore the concept of public, private and personal safety Understanding the impact of sensory needs, level 2 an opportunity to gain an understanding of how we process information via the senses, how this differs for some people, the difficulties it can present and the strategies and interventions that can be used to support. Supporting siblings, level 2 here we explore the impact on siblings of having a brother or sister with autism. We discuss the difficulties that this can bring as well as the benefits. Included within the workshop are lots of practical strategies and ideas that may be helpful in supporting siblings to understand autism, cope with their experiences and feel valued for who they are. This list is not exhaustive and may change Cost of all workshops: Those who live in Wokingham Borough - Parent/carer Subsidised by Wokingham Borough Council Others Disabled Children s Services Those who live outside Wokingham Borough Parent/carer Others Post code will be asked for at time of booking For information on all of the above workshops, please contact: Pam Breslin, Wokingham Children s Services, ASSIST team, Learning Difficulties & Disabilities, Highwood Annexe, Fairwater Drive, Woodley RG5 3RU Pamela.breslin@wokingham.gov.uk Groups and opportunities: Community social skills programmes Teenage groups Alpha and She-Wolves ASSIST work alongside other agencies / charitable organisations - Children s Centre Brambles Wiggly Worms Group; Red Kite chill out sessions etc. WOW inspirational Speaker events attended by parents, young people and practitioners Family days out Contact ASSIST for more information on the above J is accepted at group, this has never happened before. He can be himself. Parent. Alpha has helped me to be happier, they have helped me react in a calmer way. Young person. I get to meet and talk to some inspirational young people who happen to have autism. People think volunteering is about doing something for others, but I always feel I leave with more than I arrived with. Volunteer

5 Focused work/intensive intervention for family, education or leisure provider where there is a need due to family breakdown or risk or exclusion from school or leisure provider To ensure that focused work with ASSIST is monitored and recorded, a completed MARF should be sent to the Wokingham Borough Council Early Help Hub, who will then allocate direct to ASSIST, or ASSIST may be asked to be involved after a multi-agency discussion within the Early Help Hub. Call Early Help Hub on or triage@wokingham.gov.uk ASSIST will require details outlining issues and what specific work is being requested Agencies can telephone a member of the ASSIST team for a discussion about possible referral. To work directly with families - This may be to make regular visits (at times suitable to the family) to look at an issue/s within the home environment, analyse why and how the family can address the issue/s (strategies) working towards a solution with specific goals. Personal learning, meeting other parents, school meetings, supporting work experience. Parent. It may also be that ASSIST attends meetings to support those involved in considering the child/young person s needs arising through autism. We will review and monitor, and once the goal/s have been achieved, we will close our involvement. The family will still be able to access support and advice through support groups and workshops. To work alongside practitioners and providers This may be to make regular visits to an environment (e.g. education or leisure provider) to look at an issue/s, analyse why and how the issue/s can be addressed (strategies) - working towards a solution with specific goals. It may also be that ASSIST attends meetings to support all those involved in considering the child/young person s needs arising through autism. ASSIST will always look at the whole environment and consider whole environment requirements around autism awareness, skills and knowledge through the delivery of parent programmes and / or workshops in the first instance.

6 ASSIST practice the Early Support model of working i.e. supporting children, young people and their families to take control, gain knowledge of autism, and communicate their expertise in a way that enables them to make informed choices, take the lead in decision making and become active partners in service planning, improvement and delivery. ASSIST also use National Autistic Society EarlyBird and the Signs of well-being models in practice We may suggest a different way of being involved - please ring us to discuss your situation/requirements in more detail, and we can agree a way forward. Pam Breslin Manager ASSIST (Autism Spectrum Service for Information, Support & Training) & CAN network Co-ordinator NAS EarlyBird programmes in Wokingham Co-ordinator Wokingham Children s Autism Partnership