The Perth and Kinross Health and Social Care Partnership are commencing work on devising a new local policy for Autism following the end of the 10-year Scottish Autism Strategy produced by the Scottish Government.
The Partnership is looking to hear from all autistic people, children, young people, adults and their families and careers. They are interested in hearing from those who identify as autistic as well as those with a formal diagnosis to ensure they understand the full range of experience of autistic people in Perth and Kinross.
The vision from the 10-year plan was that by 2021: ‘Individuals on the autism spectrum are respected, accepted and valued by their communities and have confidence in services to treat them fairly so that they are able to have meaningful and satisfying lives.’
The Partnership is committed to ensuring that we build on the improvements in services and support for autistic people and their families and carers, that have been achieved during the lifetime of the strategy and continue to address the challenges and barriers that autistic people face in their community.
There are a range of opportunities for people to participate:
- A survey which has been produced to help gain an insight into specific themes. This can be completed by Autistic Adult, Autistic Child/Young Person and /or their Carer and Carer of Autistic Adult
- A series of engagement workshops facilitated by Perth Autism Services, Autism Initiatives One Stop Shop and Perth and Kinross Independent Advocacy Service.
- If you would like to participate in these workshops please contact ABlundell@pkc.gov.uk indicating preference of organisation you wish to engage with.
- Conversations with Ashley Blundell, the Health and Social Care Partnerships Policy Officer for Autism, who is keen to have conversations with autistic people and/or their families/carers to gain an understanding of their experiences and listen to their thoughts about where improvements are required and around what approaches, support, and help make a difference in their lives.
- If you would like to join Ashley for a conversation please contact her directly at ABlundell@pkc.gov.uk to arrange a suitable time.
The online consultation can be found at https://consult.pkc.gov.uk/hscp/autism-strategy-consultation/consultation/subpage.2022-06-14.7928265586/