Ms Emily Mullock:

I am a member of AsIAm’s youth leadership team, an amazing group run by AsIAm and led by Adam Harris and Niamh Mellerick. This group consists of an incredible team of young people who are passionate about advocacy and inclusion work. We bring the voices of young autistic people to the charity and have gained many skills and experiences. We have grown a lot as people as part of YLT.

Autistic people face many barriers when accessing the community. Accessing schools is one of these barriers. Schools are somewhere where so much beneficial change can be made and quickly. In my personal experience, I am exceptionally grateful to have two wonderful parents who have done nothing but support me when it came to school. They did everything they could to make it so that I was able to attend. I have always struggled with and disliked school from day one. This is, unfortunately, the experience for many autistic students. When I first started secondary school, the combination of the overwhelming new environment and no accommodations led me to missing significant periods of time at school. This ended up being a full year, which meant I went back and restarted first year on a reduced timetable of one class a day, which was all I was able for at the time. Without the support and advocacy from my amazing parents, the school would have never come to me and tried to figure out how to make the environment and my education accessible. Much of this is probably because the school simply did not know how and there were not enough resources in place.

Many autistic young people do not currently have access to an adequate school place, which makes them feel isolated from the community. Allowing for more resources to be put in place, such as SNAs and physical resources like sensory and quiet rooms, as well as making the building a more sensory-friendly environment would make such a difference. Educating school staff is also critical. There is ongoing education around autism in schools and this needs to continue to become more of a priority as education leads to understanding and willingness to change. This also relates to students. Educating all students on autism, neurodiversity, what that might look like and how to support your peers makes a massive difference.

When it comes to making access to healthcare, especially mental health services, more accessible, there are many barriers that could be removed which would greatly benefit young autistic people. Long waiting lists, the cost of private services, a lack of understanding of autism, healthcare providers' reluctance to listen to individual needs and the diverse needs of the autistic experience are all barriers to autistic people being afforded the same chance at healthcare services. Long waiting lists stop individuals from gaining vital and life-changing diagnoses which would allow them to gain accommodations that would greatly improve their quality of life. A lack of understanding around autism leads to all mental health issues being dismissed, as autism is used as grounds for not providing further assessment, diagnosis and therapies. This leads to autistic people and their family members feeling lost and their experiences feel insignificant.

This can be changed if practitioners and the medical field as a whole are continually educated on the diverse and nuanced needs of the autistic community, how common co-occurring conditions are and how important it is to listen to all autistic people and their family members' experiences. Of course, it is not that simple but I believe it should be a priority. Young people have a voice and a right to be heard, especially when it comes to their health. When it comes to socialising and feeling a sense of belonging, groups like AsIAm’s youth leadership team are amazing and crucial because they give autistic young people the chance to feel a sense of belonging. I had never felt more connected with a group of peers before meeting my fellow YLT members. I hope all autistic young people get the chance to feel completely comfortable being their true authentic and autistic selves. That is why the social groups that AsIAm run for all ages need to continue and for new groups to continue being set up all around the country. Even though essential services like healthcare are vital, autistic people want more than these services. We want a social life, to have fun and to feel included in the community. All any autistic person or family member asks for is the same chance as their peers, the same chance to obtain an education, access healthcare and services, socialise and feel a sense of belonging with those around them, being truly accepted as we are.